Al-Sadd lose second straight AFC Champions League match against former club of coach Răzvan Lucescu

Al-Sadd lost 0-2 at home to Al-Hilal Riyadh in the Asian Champions League on 2026-10-13. This result marked the second consecutive defeat for the Qatari side in the tournament main group stage.

Ollie Watkins opened the scoring for Al-Hilal in minute 40. Ruben Neves added a second goal from the penalty spot in minute 65 to secure the victory for the visitors.

Răzvan Lucescu is the 57-year-old coach of Al-Sadd and former Romania national team manager. He coaches Qatar's Al Sadd FC after taking over the team on 2025-07-05, signing a two-season contract.

The match featured several high-profile players. Roberto Firmino and Alessio Romagnoli played for Al-Sadd under Răzvan Lucescu in this match. Kalidou Koulibaly, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Gabriel Martinelli, and Theo Hernandez played for Al-Hilal Riyadh.

Al-Sadd has zero points and is last in their group after two losses in the first two rounds. The team previously lost 0-3 away to Iranian team Esteghlal in the first round.

Al-Sadd is tied on points with Al Gharafa, Al Wasl, and Al Quwa Al Jawiya but has an inferior goal difference. Al Ain, Esteghlal FC, and Al Hilal lead the main group standings with six points each.

Răzvan Lucescu coached Al-Hilal Riyadh from July 2019 to February 2021, winning the 2018-2019 Asian Champions League. This history added context to the fixture between the two clubs.