3 October, Reuters Neymar scored his first goal since his well-publicized move to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, when Al-Hilal defeated Iran’s Nassaji Mazandaran 3-0 at Tehran’s Azadi Stadium in the Asian Champions League group round.
With seven minutes remaining in the first half, the Brazilian scored in a contest marred by incidents that saw both teams reduced to 10 men. The Brazilian player moved from Paris St. Germain to the Saudi Pro League team for 90 million euros ($94.23 million) in the summer.
Aleksandar Mitrovic had put the Saudi team ahead in the 18th minute when referee Ma Ning dismissed Salman Al Faraj of Al-Hilal and Amir Houshmand of Nassaji following an altercation on the pitch.
In the 58th minute, Neymar scored with his left foot to extend Al-Hilal’s advantage, and in stoppage time, replacement Saleh Al Shehri sealed the victory.
Al-Hilal have not previously won in the group stage of a continental tournament this year after beginning their campaign last month with a draw against Navbahor.
After defeating Mumbai City 3-0 on Tuesday, the Uzbek team joined Al-Hilal atop Group D with four points. Goals from Jamshid Iskanderov, Jasurbek Yakhshiboev, and Doniyor Abdumannopov sealed the victory.
With a 4-2 victory against Turkmenistan’s Ahal, l Ain from the United Arab Emirates took exclusive control of first place in Group A, while Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan fell to a 2-0 defeat to Al Fayha of Saudi Arabia.
Al Ain followed up their victory against Pakhtakor in the first round with a strong offensive display in front of their home supporters. Brazilian midfielder Erik gave the previous champions the lead in the fourth minute with a precise finish.
Al Ain enjoyed a three-goal advantage at the half thanks to Soufiane Rahimi and Kodjo Laba, and even though Elman Tagayew drew a goal back for the visitors in the 58th, Kouame Kouadio added a fourth, making Dayanch Meredow’s late goal simply a consolation.
Abdelhamid Sabiri scored a goal for Al Ain in both half of their 2-0 victory against Pakhtakor at home, giving them a three-point lead over Ahal and Al Fayha.
The top teams from each of the 10 four-team groups go automatically to the round of 16, leaving spots for the three teams from the east and west of the continent with the best records as runners-up.