UAE Pro League defending champions Sharjah FC, meanwhile, continued their superb start by staying unbeaten while in Qatar, Al Sadd's woes continued as they suffered their second consecutive league defeat.

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Al Hilal secured a 1-0 win over Japan's Urawa Red Diamonds in the first leg at the King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh on Saturday.

André Carrillo's 60th minute header separated the sides at the end of the 90 minutes, although Al Hilal could have well won by a bigger margin.

Al Hilal were good value for the win and could have won by a bigger margin but the fact that, said Otsuki, the Saudi Arabia side didn't gives Urawa a fighting chance in the November 24 return leg in Saitama.

The hosts made their intentions clear from the start, controlling possession and building up pressure on their opponents, while Urawa kept a compact shape and looked to hit on the counter.

The first 20 minutes saw each side get a major opportunity, but heroic defending at both ends meant the goalkeepers would remain untested yet. Daisuke Suzuki threw his body to deflect Sebastian Giovinco’s shot 14 minutes into the game while Ali Al Bulayhi blocked Takahiro Sekine’s effort from inside the Al Hilal box three minutes later.

Marmar said he hoped Al Ahed's win - the first time a Lebanese club has won the AFC Cup - had put a smile on the faces of his compatriots.

"This win is for them and I really hope that we have brought happiness by winning the AFC Cup. We wanted so badly to win the Cup for the people of Lebanon and I am so happy that the players delivered," said Marmar.

The Beirut-based club gained an early advantage when 4.25 SC goalkeeper An Tae-song was given his marching orders for bringing down goal-bound Ahmad Zreik in the 26th minute, but despite that, Al Ahed struggled to find the net.

Yakubu revealed that Marmar’s words of encouragement during the break propelled Al Ahed past a defensive 4.25, and they saw the fruits of their labour in the 74th minute when the Ghanaian headed home Hussein Dakik’s cross.

A second-half header from Issah Yakubu proved decisive for Bassem Marmar’s side, who navigated the entire knockout stage without conceding a goal on their way to a maiden Continental title.

Al Ahed spent much of the match in the ascendancy, with 4.25’s cause damaged by an early red card to goalkeeper An Tae-song, with Yakubu’s winner coming after a number of earlier chances had gone begging.