Sharjah got off to a flying start and within six minutes they had handed goalkeeper Cassio his first test of the night. Brazilian forward Welliton broke free down the right and squared for his compatriot Igor Coronado who applied a powerful low finish, but the Al Taawoun goalkeeper was up to the challenge and made the save.

Halfway through the first 45 minutes, Cassio repeated his heroics in an almost-identical manner. This time it was Khalid Bawazir who was set up by Welliton’s cross from the right and the midfielder watched Al Taawoun’s Brazilian goalkeeper make a fine save to keep the scores level.

Persepolis entered the Matchday Five fixture knowing a win would keep them top of the group going into the final matchday, while for Al Duhail - defeated by Sharjah in their previous match - the three points would take them past their opponents and boost their chances of progress to the Round of 16.

Sepahan had started their campaign with a 4-0 defeat of Al Ain at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium courtesy of Mohammed Mohebi, Kiros, Soroush Rafiei and Mohammad Tayyebi but couldn't find a way past their opponents at the second time of asking.

The two sides shared the spoils when they met on Matchday Two, with top scorer Abderrazak Hamdallah and Abdulrahman Al Obaid getting on the scoresheet for Al Nassr, while Hassan Al Haydos’ goal was supplemented with Abdulelah Al Amri’s own goal to for Al Sadd.

With Sepahan having to settle for a 0-0 draw with Al Ain in Monday's late match, Al Sadd joined Al Nassr in the Round of 16 from Group D.

Fayyadh gave Al Shorta the lead in the 25th minute but a series of missed chances cost the Iraqi side heavily after substitute Amir Arsalan Motahari equalised for Esteghlal

A win would have sealed Al Shorta's place in the Round of 16 but they now need group winners Al Ahli Saudi FC to deny Esteghlal a win on Wednesday to advance.

The draw at the Al Janoub Stadium kept alive Shabab Al Ahli’s knockout stage hopes, with the UAE side having to defeat defending champions Al Hilal SFC and needing Islamic Republic of Iran's Shahr Khodro FC to deny Pakhtakor of Uzbekistan a win in Wednesday's final round of Group B matches.

The defending AFC Champions League winners produced a gritty display in their 0-0 Group B draw with Shahr Khodro on Sunday, earning the point which sealed their passage to the Round of 16.

It was a magnificent feat as it was achieved with only 14 players in the matchday squad and those who played said they were proud to have advanced despite the challenging situation the Saudi Pro League champions were in.