Al-Ittihad beats Al-Sharjah 3-0 in the Asian Champions League Elite

By Canadian Press on November 4, 2025.

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia champion Al-Ittihad shrugged off its poor domestic form to defeat Al-Sharjah of the United Arab Emirates 3-0 in the Asian Champions League Elite on Tuesday.

Since his appointment on Oct. 7, coach Sergio Conceição has yet to win in three Saudi Pro League matches, but Steven Bergwijn put Al-Ittihad ahead after eight minutes. Goals from Karim Benzema and Roger Fernandes then sealed the win for the two-time champion.

Al-Ittihad’s Jeddah rival, Al-Ahli, moved into second place in the group with a 2-1 win over Qatar’s Al-Sadd, thanks to goals from Riyad Mahrez and Matheus Goncalves.

On Monday, Al-Hilal, also of Saudi Arabia, remained the only team in the tournament with a perfect record after a 2-1 victory over Al-Gharafa of Qatar, earning the maximum 12 points to stay atop its group. Salem Al-Dawsari, the recently named AFC Player of the Year, opened the scoring for the four-time champion, and Brazilian forward Kaio Cesar doubled the lead before Al-Gharafa scored a late consolation.

In the eastern zone, the 24-team tournament is divided into two groups of 12, with the top eight from each advancing to the knockout stage. Sanfrecce Hiroshima of Japan went top after a 1-0 win over South Korea’s Gangwon FC. Elsewhere, Melbourne City beat Machida Zelvia of Japan 2-1, and FC Seoul drew 0-0 with Chinese Super League team Chengdu Rongcheng.

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The Associated Press