On Tuesday night, Al Nassr finished their Asian Champions League group campaign with a 1-1 draw away to Istiklol, resting Cristiano Ronaldo and starting the majority of their international contingent on the bench.
The Saudi team, eager to bounce back after a Saudi Pro League defeat to archrivals Al Hilal on Friday, had already qualified for the knockout stages as Group E winners.
With progress guaranteed with one matchday remaining, Nassr manager Luis Castro elected to leave Ronaldo out of the squad for the match in Dushanbe, instead naming Sadio Mane, Aymeric Laporte, Otavio, and Anderson Talisca as replacements.
Istiklol seized the lead shortly after the half-hour mark at the Pamir Stadium when midfielder Alisher Dzhalilov struck a low shot into the bottom corner.
The hosts, who have yet to win a game this season, were aiming for three points to move them off the bottom of the group.
However, Abdulrahman Ghareeb equalised five minutes into the second half, converting a close-range volley at the second attempt after Istiklol custodian Rustam Yatimov saved the first.
In the 74th minute, Castro sent on Talisca, Nassr’s second-highest scorer this season behind Ronaldo, as well as Ivory Coast midfielder Seko Fofana and Portugal winger Otavio, but the visitors were unable to win.
Nassr finished the group stage undefeated, with four wins and two draws.
In the other group match, Qatar’s Al Duhail ended Persepolis’ prospects of qualifying with a 2-1 victory at the Azadi Stadium in Tehran – a contest that lasted an incredible 107 minutes.
Michael Olunga scored the game-winning goal with seven minutes remaining in normal time, only moments after Giorgi Gvelesiani missed a penalty for the hosts.
The outcome had no effect on the overall rankings in the group, with Persepolis finishing second and Duhail third.
The top ten teams from each group, as well as the six best second-placed teams, advance to the knockout rounds, with the East Asia side of the groups wrapping up next week.
The competition finishes with a two-leg final in May, with the last 16 beginning in February.