Buriram United, known as the 'Thunder Castle,' suffered a defeat to UAE's Shabab Al Ahli in extra time, resulting in their elimination from the AFC Champions League Elite 2025-2026 quarterfinals.
In the AFC Champions League Elite 2025/26 quarterfinals, Buriram United, the sole representative from Thailand, faced Shabab Al Ahli from the United Arab Emirates.
The first half opened with Shabab Al Ahli taking the lead at the 13th minute. Igor Gomes headed the ball from a corner kick; it hit the post then deflected off Peter Zulj into his own net. The score remained 1-0 until halftime.
In the second half at the 49th minute, Shabab Al Ahli extended their lead to 2-0 from a corner kick. Renan Victor shook off his marker and headed the ball to Saeed Ezatolahi, who scored with a header.
At the 64th minute, Buriram United scored to narrow the gap to 1-2 after Saeed Ezatolahi handled the ball, resulting in a penalty. Guilherme Bissoli successfully converted the spot kick.
By the 70th minute, Buriram United equalized at 2-2 with a beautiful long-range shot from Peter Zulj, the ball striking the post and going into the net.
After 90 minutes, Buriram United and Shabab Al Ahli were tied 2-2, leading to extra time to decide the winner.
At the 93rd minute in extra time, Shabab Al Ahli regained the lead at 3-2 thanks to a goal from Renan Victor.
By the 123rd minute, Buriram United was reduced to 10 men after Go Myung-sok received a red card for a foul on Shabab Al Ahli's attacker Guilherme Bala.
Neither side could score further, and the match ended with Buriram United losing 2-3 to Shabab Al Ahli, concluding their run at the quarterfinal stage.
Lineups for both teams:
Buriram United: Neil Etheridge, Kingsley Schindler, Go Myung-sok, Curtis Good, Filip Stojkovic, Kenneth Dougall, Goran Kausic, Peter Zulj, Supachai Jaided (Sasalak Haiprakhon 99'), Emmanuel Toku (Sandy Walsh 46') (Theerathon Bunmathan 112'), Guilherme Bissoli.
Shabab Al Ahli: Hamad Al-Mekebali, Igor Gomes (Mateus Henrique 91'), Bogdan Planic, Renan Victor, Kauan Santos, Breno Cascardo (Damian Garcia 79'), Saeed Ezatolahi (Eid Al Nuaimi 106'), Yuri Cesar (Tiago Scarpino 113'), Federico Cartabia (Mohammed Juma 88'), Guilherme Bala, Matheus Dias (Sultan Adil 74').