Khalid Essa praises Al Ain teammates after dramatic shoot-out win over Ronaldo's Al Nassr

Al Ain goalkeeper Khalid Essa praised his teammates' bravery after they prevailed over Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr on penalties to secure a place in the Asian Champions League semi-finals.

Monday's second leg in Riyadh finished 4-3 to Nassr, with Essa at fault for three of the Saudi side's goals. Following Al Ain's 1-0 victory in last week's first leg, the match went to extra time and then spot kicks, where Essa atoned for his earlier errors, saving Marcelo Brozovic's effort while Alex Telles and Otavio also fluffed their lines for the UAE club to triumph 3-1.

"I thank God for granting us success. I believe that the match was dramatic, and we expected Al Nassr to attack us from the first minute, after losing in Al Ain," Essa said.

Al Ain had led through Sofiane Rahimi's 28th-minute goal, following a lengthy VAR review, and the Moroccan added a second on 45 minutes to put the Garden City club firmly in control.

Nassr were thrown a lifeline five minutes into first half added time when a rush of blood left Essa stranded outside his area. Sadio Mane's scuffed shot fell kindly for Abdulrahman Gareeb to slot home to an unguarded net.

Essa's own goal on 52 minutes levelled the tie at 2-2 on the night and Nassr drew level on aggregate when Essa failed to repel a Telles free kick.

"I thank my fellow players for being steadfast and not backing down, especially after we conceded the second goal, and this was the turning point in the match," Essa said.

There was added drama in extra time when Ayman Yahya had his yellow card for a foul on Al Ain captain Bandar Al Ahbabi upgraded to a red following a VAR review.

Al Ain once again led the match and the tie when Sultan Al Shamsi poked home after a blunder by Nassr keeper Raghed Al