Dramatic Al-Nassr comeback secures AFC Champions League group stage spot

Saudi side Al-Nassr claimed a place in the group stage of the AFC Champions League in sensational style on Tuesday with a 4-2, come-from-behind win over Shabab Al-Ahli in the final moments of their play-off match.

With just two minutes remaining on the clock, the Emirati team were 2-1 ahead and looked to be going through, only for three late goals to put the hosts through. As a result, Saudi Arabia will have four representatives in the tournament when the group stage begins in September, with Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad and Al-Fayha having already claimed their spots.

The game also marked the first win of the season for Al-Nassr, who lost the first two games of their domestic league campaign. A third defeat in a row, and missing out on the Champions League, would have put new coach Luis Castro under some early pressure. As it is, the Portuguese boss will, for a while at least, be able to bask in the glory of such a dramatic end to an exciting clash.

Anderson Talisca gave Al-Nassr the early lead but Yahya Al-Ghassani struck twice, either side of half time, to give the Dubai side the edge. Then those three late, late goals, from Sultan Al-Ghannam, Talisca and Marcelo Brozovic, sealed a win that had appeared so unlikely just moments before.

Had the nine-time Saudi champions failed to fight back, there would have been plenty of controversy to ponder. Cristiano Ronaldo, winner of the UEFA Champions League no fewer than five times, felt he should have been awarded not one but two penalties at the end of the first half. Many would agree that he was right about at least one of them. The referee might therefore be relieved that the late comeback played out the way it did.

The start of the game was almost as perfectly entertaining