Al Ittihad beats Guangzhou 4-2 in ACL quarters

Published Sep. 19, 2012 5:09 p.m. ET

foxsports

Saudi club Al Ittihad twice came from behind to beat Guangzhou Evergrande of China 4-2 in the first leg of the Asian Champions League quarterfinals Wednesday with Naif Hazazi scoring twice.

Gao Lin put Guangzou in front in the 27th minute, only for Al Ittihad's Diego Souza to equalize a minute later. Huang Bowen ensured the Chinese side would go into halftime with the lead when he scored in the 38th.

Al Ittihad's Mohammed Noor leveled for the Saudi side from the penalty spot in the 48th, and Hazazi put the match out of reach with goals in the 62nd and 89th.

Guangzhou is coached by Italy's 2006 World Cup-winning boss, Marcello Lippi, who was hired in May with the goal of giving the big-spending Super League champion its first continental title since 1989.