Ivic: Victory a morale booster for Al Ain

Wed, 16 Sep, 2026

Ivic: Victory a morale booster for Al Ain

Al Ain: Vladimir Ivic said Al Ain FC's victory against Al Nassr Club in the AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™ on Tuesday was a morale booster for the UAE side.

The former continental champions cruised to a 4-0 win against Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr with Ivic saying the win showed what his side can do. 

https://www.the-afc.com/en/club/afc_champions_league_elite.html/video/aclelite-|-al-ain-fc-uae-4-0-al-nassr-club-ksa

https://www.the-afc.com/en/more/photo/3192660

https://www.the-afc.com/en/more/photo/3192662

MD1: Al Hilal SFC (KSA) 2-1 Al Gharafa SC (QAT)

Wed, 16 Sep, 2026

MD1: Al Hilal SFC (KSA) 2-1 Al Gharafa SC (QAT)

Riyadh: Al Hilal SFC overcame stiff resistance from Al Gharafa SC to emerge 2-1 winners in their opening AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™ match on Tuesday.

Seeking a fifth Asian title, Simone Inzaghi’s side got the start they wanted but not without a slow start with both sides going down to 10 men midway through the first half.

MD1: Al Ain FC (UAE) 4-0 Al Nassr Club (KSA)

Wed, 16 Sep, 2026

MD1: Al Ain FC (UAE) 4-0 Al Nassr Club (KSA)

Al Ain: Houssine Rahimi struck twice to take Al Ain FC to a 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr Club in their opening AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™ fixture on Tuesday.

Rahimi netted in the 25th minute and followed up with a second after the break before his brother Soufiane added a third in the 72nd minute, with Giorgos Giakoumakis wrapping up five minutes before the end to give the former champions from the United Arab Emirates a well-deserved opening win. 

MD1: Johor Darul Ta’zim (MAS) 1-1 Buriram United (THA)

Wed, 16 Sep, 2026

MD1: Johor Darul Ta’zim (MAS) 1-1 Buriram United (THA)

Iskandar Puteri: Neil Etheridge made a late penalty save as 10-man Buriram United held on to claim a 1-1 draw with Johor Darul Ta’zim at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium on Tuesday in the opening round of matches in the league phase of the AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™.

The former Philippines goalkeeper kept out Bergson da Silva’s 87th minute spot-kick, saving at full stretch to his right to push the ball to safety after Arif Aiman had been brought down in the area by defender Eduardo Mancha.
 
That crucial intervention came after Stefan Schimmer had scored in the 43rd minute for Buriram United to cancel out Oscar Arribas’ 26th minute opener, when Etheridge should have done better to keep out the long range effort.
 
Kenny Dougall was sent off 12 minutes into the second half for a second bookable offence while JDT also finished the game with 10 men when Eddy Israfilov was dismissed for a dangerous challenge on Uros Radakovic in the 89th minute.

MD1: Beijing FC (CHN) 3-1 FC Pohang Steelers (KOR)

Wed, 16 Sep, 2026

MD1: Beijing FC (CHN) 3-1 FC Pohang Steelers (KOR)

Beijing: Early goals either side of half-time steered Beijing FC to a 3-1 win over FC Pohang Steelers in their AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™ encounter on Tuesday.

A back-and-forth opening quarter hour saw Beijing surge ahead through Chadrac Akolo before his second-minute strike was cancelled out by a sixth-minute Jakob Tranziska penalty, with Zhang Xizhe restoring the home side’s advantage in the 12th minute.

Jeremy Dudziak struck a minute into the second half to ensure the Chinese Super League champions left with their first three points from an entertaining opening match.

MD1: Kashima Antlers FC (JPN) 7-1 Newcastle Jets FC (AUS)

Tue, 15 Sep, 2026

MD1: Kashima Antlers FC (JPN) 7-1 Newcastle Jets FC (AUS)

Kashima: Kashima Antlers FC made a statement return to the AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™ with a 7-1 win over Newcastle Jets on Tuesday.

Aleksandar Cavric starred with a hat-trick for the Japanese side with Homare Tokuda netting a brace as the 2018 champions, who last featured in the continental stage in 2019, marked their comeback in emphatic fashion.