Al-Hilal advantage in Asian CL

Al-Hilal will take a commanding lead into next week’s Asian Champions League (CL) quarter-final second leg after defeating Al-Ittihad 2-0 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh on Tuesday. The record four-time continental champions, runners-up last year, were comfortable winners in the all-Saudi Arabian encounter in the capital. Former Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic and reigning Asian Player of the Year Salem Al Dawsari scored within two minutes of one another late in the first half to seal a comfortable first-leg victory. World Cup winner N’Golo Kante was sent off for Ittihad midway through the second half and will be suspended for the return match in Jeddah next Tuesday.