Soufiane Rahimi, former star of Raja Casablanca, played a pivotal role in Al Ain’s qualification for the semifinals of the AFC Champions League. It was largely thanks to him that the United Arab Emirates club eliminated Al-Nassr on Monday, March 11, in the quarterfinals.
Rahimi, who had already scored the only goal in the first leg (1-0), set up his teammates with a brace (28th and 45th minutes). And when the Saudis managed to equalize and win 4-3 in extra time, Rahimi proved decisive in the penalty shootout.
The Moroccan forward converted Al Ain’s first attempt, and the team went on to successfully score all four of their penalties. In contrast, Al Nassr saw Brozovic, Teiles, and Otavio miss their shots. Only Ronaldo was able to score for the Yellow team. As a result, the Saudis lost the penalty shootout 4-1 after a 4-4 aggregate score.
