Riyadh: Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal had their work cut out for them after an early Rafael Silva goal for the visiting Urawa Red Diamonds side, but despite wasting a hatful of chances, they grabbed an equaliser to keep their hopes alive ahead of the second leg of the AFC Champions League final in Saitama next week.
Coach Ramon Diaz saluted his players’ fighting spirit as they took control and set up shop in Urawa’s half for extended periods after falling behind.
The 1-1 draw at home means Diaz’s men need to score in Japan if they are to stand a chance of winning the title. And the former Paraguay coach has vowed to fight until the last minute of the reverse fixture.
“We started a bit slow, and conceded a goal in an unexpected manner, but I was impressed by the players response after the goal,” said the Argentine.
“There is still a second leg in Japan and we will play to win in Saitama. This is not a bad result and I have faith in our ability to turn it around. The tie is not over until the final whistle in the second leg."
The hosts enjoyed two thirds of the possession and had 20 attempts, a quarter of which were between the sticks as goalkeeper Shusaku Nikishawa produced an impressive performance to keep the score at 1-1.
Continued domination produced no further goals even as Diaz threw in all his attacking options, including summer signing Mokhtar Fallatah who made his 2017 AFC Champions League debut with 20 minutes to go.
Diaz saw encouraging signs in the cameo of his 30-year-old substitute striker.
“I would have been worried if we hadn’t created chances, but as you saw we were the better team and we created a lot of chances. We have the capability to play a big game in Japan,
“The fans should be proud of everyone in this team. Fallatah showed significant improvement in training recently. He came in as a substitute at a difficult stage of the match and I thought he contributed well. I am satisfied with his overall performance.”
Photos: Lagardère Sports
Source: the-afc.com