(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Al Hilal took charge of their AFC Champions League quarter-final clash with Qatar's Lekhwiya yesterday with Carlos Eduardo scoring twice as Georgios Donis' side notched up a 4-1 win ahead of the second leg in mid-September.
Eduardo's late header put the cap on a performance that had earlier seen goals from Khalid Kaabi and Eduardo give last season's beaten finalists the upper hand after Ailton's opener had been cancelled out by Youssef Msakni.
Msakni's goal will give the Qatar champions some hope going into the second leg on home soil in Doha next month, but the Saudis will now be runaway favourites to qualify for the semi-finals once again.
Lekhwiya's task of advancing to the semi-finals, was made harder than necessary in the 11th minute when goalkeeper Amine Lecomte dawdled on the edge of his own penalty area while in possession and his eventual attempt at a clearance was bundled over the line by Brazilian striker Ailton.
The Qatari club, however, reacted sharply and within six minutes the scores were level. Nam Tae-hee led the charge on the Al Hilal defence before slotting his pass in front of Msakni, who clipped the ball home despite Kwak Tae-hwi's efforts.
Three minutes after the half hour mark, Lekhwiya should have taken the lead. Msakni dispossessed Salman Al Faraj deep inside the Al Hilal half before laying the ball off to Luiz Junior, but his effort only found the side netting.
The miss was to prove costly for Lekhwiya as, within seconds, Al Hilal were back in front. The Saudis pushed forward at pace and, although Salem Al Dawsari's attempt at goal was deflected wide of the target, Kaabi stole in to finish from the tightest of angles, the ball crossing the line thanks to a ricochet off the post.
Four minutes later, the two-time Asian club champions were further in front. Again Al Hilal hit on the break with Eduardo scoring from close range after Salem Al Dawsari had played in Yasir Al Shahrani and his cross found Eduardo in the middle with time to finish.
Lekhwiya came out looking to reduce the deficit in the second half but, despite their efforts, it was Al Hilal who always looked more likely to score again.
Eduardo saw his attempt at an overhead kick blocked while Digao found the back of the net only to see his header ruled out for offside.
But four minutes from time Eduardo further enhanced Al Hilal's advantage from close range as he nodded Faisal Darwish's cross from the left over the line to put the Saudis in an all-but unassailable position.
In Tokyo, Paulinho scored a stunning free-kick from 40 metres as Luiz Felipe Scolari's Guangzhou Evergrande thumped Kashiwa Reysol 3-1 to put one foot in the semi-finals yesterday.
An early own goal by Kashiwa captain Daisuke Suzuki put the visitors ahead before the wonder-strike from Brazilian midfielder Paulinho, signed from Tottenham Hotspur in June.
Gao Lin extended Guangzhou's advantage with a towering header early in the second half before Masato Kudo cut the deficit with a close-range effort late in the game.
But barring a miraculous turnaround in second leg, Guangzhou will go into a last-four clash against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors or Gamba Osaka.
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