Al-Ain

Al-Ain thrashed 10-man Yokohama F Marinos 5-1 in the second leg of the Asian Champions League final on Saturday to lift the continental title for the first time in 21 years with a 6-3 aggregate win over the Japanese side.

Sacked by Notts County, Oldham and Barnet, Harry Kewell was on the cusp of coaching oblivion; which makes his rise to Saturday's ACL final all the more remarkable.

Hernan Crespo and Harry Kewell speak about facing each other as managers 19 years after the 2005 Champions League final.

Kouta Watanabe struck six minutes from time to give Yokohama F. Marinos a 2-1 win over Al-Ain of the United Arab Emirates in the first leg of the Asian Champions League final on Saturday, earning Harry Kewell's side a slender advantage.

Al-Ain advanced to the Asian Champions League final despite losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal in Riyadh on Tuesday, with the side from the United Arab Emirates completing a 5-4 aggregate victory to progress to next month's decider.

Al-Hilal's record breaking run of 34 consecutive wins came to a shuddering halt on Wednesday as Jorge Jesus' Saudi Pro League leaders were beaten 4-2 by hosts Al-Ain in the first leg of their Asian Champions League semi-final.

Al Ain will take a 1-0 lead into the second leg of their Asian Champions League quarterfinal against Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Nassr next week after the side from the United Arab Emirates saw off the Saudi Pro League outfit on Monday.

The final day of play started with all four teams from Group C still vying for the last two spots in the knockout rounds.

Real Madrid have won the past three editions of the tournament and moved ahead of Barcelona as the team to have won it the most times.

Al Ain beat River Plate 5-4 on penalties to reach the Club World Cup final after their last-four clash finished 2-2 after 90 minutes and extra time.