Watkins double lifts Al Hilal back to winning ways against Shabab Al Ahli

Al Hilal returned to winning ways in the AFC Champions League Elite with a 2-0 victory over Shabab Al Ahli, inflicting the United Arab Emirates side’s first defeat of this season’s competition and moving into second place in the West region.

The match was played at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh on Tuesday, in the fourth round of the league phase.

Ollie Watkins gave Al Hilal an early lead after only six minutes. The England forward met a pass from Senegal international Kalidou Koulibaly and finished into the net to put the Saudi Arabian side ahead.

Al Hilal head coach Simone Inzaghi was then forced into two changes before the half-hour mark, creating a difficult spell for the hosts despite their advantage.

The first substitution came in the 28th minute, when Mohammed Al-Mahzari replaced fellow Saudi player Sabri Dahl at right-back. Dahl had not appeared to be suffering from an injury, but Inzaghi nevertheless opted to make the change.

A second change followed six minutes later. Nasser Al-Dawsari came on for Simon Buabre after the French player was injured while carrying the ball through midfield.

Those setbacks did not halt Al Hilal’s momentum. Watkins doubled his side’s advantage in the opening minute of the second half, turning a cross from Turkish defender Yusuf Akcicek into the Shabab Al Ahli goal.

The result allowed Al Hilal to respond immediately to their unexpected 3-1 defeat by Qatar’s Al Shamal in the previous round. It also marked a return to victory in the AFC Champions League Elite after that loss.

Al Hilal now have nine points and sit second in the West region, three points behind leaders Al Ain, who have collected 12 points.

Shabab Al Ahli remain on nine points but drop to fourth in the standings after suffering their first loss of the current Asian campaign.