In Riyadh on Monday, Al Hilal managed to salvage a 1-1 draw with Uzbekistan’s Navbahor in the Asian Champions League, thanks to Ali Al-Bulaihi’s equaliser coming 10 minutes into stoppage time.
This match marked Neymar’s first start for the Saudi Pro League side.
The Saudi Arabia international defender, Al Bulaihi, rose to head in a cross from Brazilian winger Michael, cancelling out Toma Tabatadze’s earlier strike in the 52nd minute of the Group D encounter.
It appeared that Samvel Babayan’s team was heading for an unlikely victory before Al Bulaihi’s late goal.
Neymar, who arrived in Saudi Arabia with much fanfare over the summer, was in the starting lineup for the first time following his €90 million ($96 million) move from Paris Saint-Germain.
However, he faced frustration throughout the match.
The game looked destined to end in a defeat for Neymar and his team until Al Bulaihi’s header, which came during more than 14 minutes of injury time, finally ended Navbahor’s determined resistance against their expensively assembled opponents.
In the Asian Champions League, only the group winners among the 40 participating teams are assured of progressing to the last 16.
Currently, Al Hilal is trailing debutants Nassaji Mazandaran in the early group standings.
The Iranians currently lead the group after securing a 2-0 victory over India’s Mumbai City in Pune, with goals from Ehsan Hosseini and Mohammad Reza Azadi in each half.
Meanwhile, Saudi Pro League champions Al Ittihad had no difficulties in Group C, as they comfortably won 3-0 against AGMK from Uzbekistan, even though coach Nuno Espirito Santo did not include former Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema in the squad.
Al Ittihad’s perfect start in Jeddah began with Haroune Camara’s 11th-minute goal after goalkeeper Botirali Ergashev’s save. Four minutes later, Romarinho doubled the lead with a composed close-range finish.
The Brazilian then added a third from the penalty spot just before halftime, following a foul on Abderazzak Hamdallah in the area by Dilshodbek Akhmadaliev.
Al-Ittihad now leads the table, as Air Force Club played out a 2-2 draw with Sepahan from Iran, with 19-year-old Ali Jassim scoring twice for the Iraqi side in Erbil.
In addition, Nasaf Quarshi from Uzbekistan secured a late 1-0 win over Jordan’s Al-Faisaly to top Group B ahead of Qatar’s Al Sadd and Sharjah from the United Arab Emirates, who played out a goalless draw.