Trailing 0-1 on the road in the first round, Riyadh Victory would have been a tough task to turn around and advance at home in the second round.

Facing veteran AFC Champions League giants Al Ain, their familiarity with the Asian scene and their knowledge of Riyadh Victory made the game steeply more difficult. In addition, the absence of Talisker has left Crowe in an isolated position, severely restricting the team’s attack and making the hope of a comeback even slimmer.

Wanting to win and fearing to lose, coupled with the fact that they really didn’t find a strategy to cope with Talisca’s absence, they still came to a passive state quickly in the opening half, and Al Ain played a very flexible and smart game. Knowing that Riyadh in particular wanted a quick equaliser, they ceded control and retreated on their own initiative, only to create several counter-attacks that left Riyadh in a state of disarray. It was a bit hard to know whether to attack hard or to set up a good defence.

As a result, in the first half, Al Ain almost set up a win. Their 2 goals put Riyadh in an unenviable position, and the total score had come to 0-3. Crowe’s disappointment and his teammates’ heads down and silence all signalled that the game was going in the opposite direction of what they wanted it to go. But they didn’t give up yet.

In the first half of extra time, Crowe broke through the foul want to penalty kick referee did not give; However, 2 minutes later, Mane, Garib’s cooperation, help the team back to a point. 1-3 equal to 0-2, in the absence of the constraints of the number of away breakthroughs, the opportunity to still have.

The second half started with Mane, Ghalib and Ottavio again, this time the side duo was finally working together to play the role of Talisca. This time they broke the Al Ain defence and the score came to 2-3, just one more to go!

At this point, it was time for the much-anticipated president to step up. After all, “Crowe in adversity” is a familiar slogan, and as the “Champions League King”, it was time for the extremely experienced player to step up at this crucial moment. But unexpectedly, the 39-year-old legend with a more comical scene, to the tension of the game with a comedic colour. He missed a wide open goal that was so close to his goal.

The president himself held his head after kicking this goal. After watching him play football for nearly 20 years, I really can’t recall another time that was similar to this “disgrace”. The president is indeed tired, the years are not forgiving.

Fortunately, Tellez’s free kick and Ottavio’s combination, or equalised the score to 3-3. Ottavio’s play was really good this game, basically taking over “half” of Talisca’s duties. If he can keep playing like this, he can be promoted next season and given relatively more duties.

However, perhaps too much energy was used up in the equaliser, and Riyadh quickly relaxed after the 3-3 draw, giving the players a chance to catch their breath, which was well taken by the opposition. Firstly, Yahya received a red card, and then the goalkeeper’s cheap mistake gave the visitors another chance to take the lead. Just like that, Riyadh was once again at a disadvantage.

But this time, Crowe finally stepped up to the plate and took the penalty himself. 4-4!

There were no more chances for either side to break through, and Al Ain won the brutal penalty shootout. With that, they broke the president’s dream of winning the AFC Champions League. There are still many fans worried about what the team should do in VS Riyadh Crescent (next round of AFC Champions League quarter-finals)? That’s a worrying question indeed, as they were eliminated and can start preparing for next season’s competition.