Al-Hilal's Dominance: Mitrovic's Hat-Trick in 6-0 ACL Win

 Al-Hilal's Dominance: Mitrovic's Hat-Trick in 6-0 ACL Win

(L) Aleksandar Mitrovic of Al Hilal Saudi FC fights for the ball during the Saudi Pro League football match between Al-Hilal and Al-Khaleej at Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium on October 20, 2023 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Image-Getty)

Al-Hilal's dominance was on full display as Aleksandar Mitrovic's exceptional performance secured a resounding 6-0 triumph over Mumbai City in the Asian Champions League Group D clash in Riyadh. The former Fulham striker wasted no time, opening the scoring in the fifth minute and subsequently doubling the lead in the second half.

Mitrovic's hat-trick was sealed with a stunning overhead kick, adding to goals from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Mohammed Al Burayk, and Abdulelah Al Malki. Mumbai City's Dutch midfielder Yoell van Nieff acknowledged the team's missed opportunities, admitting, "We lost 6-0, it's not why we came here. When we had the ball we could have done more. We couldn't keep the ball, and that's the most important thing. Al-Hilal have a lot of quality, so all credit to them."

Meanwhile, in Group B, Sharjah of the United Arab Emirates secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Nasaf of Uzbekistan, with goalkeeper Adel Al Hosani's decisive save from Azizbek Amonov's penalty securing the win. Despite the pressure, Nasaf remains second in the group standings.

In Group C, Al Ittihad of Saudi Arabia clinched a hard-fought 1-0 win against Iraq's Air Force Club, thanks to Abderrazak Hamedallah's injury-time heroics. Sepahan from Iran also secured a notable 3-1 victory over Uzbek side AGMK, with Ramin Rezaeian's double spearheading their triumph.

As the competition progresses, only the group winners are guaranteed spots in the knockout rounds, where they will be joined by the top three runners-up from both the eastern and western regions of the continent.