DUBAI — Lekhwiya of Qatar blanked Saudi side Al-Ettifaq 2-0 in Doha to advance to the knock-out stages of AFC Champions League Wednesday.



In a nail biting Group B, all four clubs — Lekhwiya, Pakhtakor, Al-Ettifaq and Al-Shabab Al-Arabi — were separated by just two points, meaning both qualifying spots were open.



While Lekhwiya secured one, Al-Shabab Al-Arabi of the UAE clinched the other one with a 2-1 win over Uzbek club Pakhtakor.

Leuis Martin Carlos Jr. put Lekhwiya in front with a goal in the 12th minute, while Khaled Muftah put the result beyond any doubt with the second for the Qatari side.



Unheralded Buriram United earlier made history as the first Thai team to reach the Champions League last 16 after a thrilling night’s action.

The club from provincial Thailand missed a first-half penalty but then twice came back from a goal down — within two minutes each time — to snatch a 2-2 draw with Korean champion FC Seoul.



The result was enough to take Buriram through behind Group E winners Seoul after Japan’s Vegalta Sendai, its main rival for the second qualifying spot, went down 2-1 to Jiangsu Sainty.



Buriram and Sendai went into their final group games with identical records, meaning another matching result Wednesday could have seen their fates decided by a tally of yellow and red cards or even a special lottery.

At the World Cup Stadium in Seoul, Carmelo Gonzalez should have put Buriram in front from the penalty spot before half-time, but goalkeeper Yu Sang-Hun dived low and to his right to turn the shot around the post.



Nine minutes after the break, the host carved open Buriram for the opener with a move that criss-crossed the pitch and was finished sweetly by Jung Seung-yong, arriving late in the box.



But the lead was short-lived. In less than two minutes, a shot from Gonzalez was laid off by Kai Hirano for Ekkachai Samre, who revived Buriram’s hopes by putting them level.



Another quick-fire exchange of goals, in the 74th and 75th minutes, made it 2-2. Kim Hyun-sung’s header from a set-piece was followed by a raking free-kick from Buriram’s Theerathon Bunmathan which crept in untouched.

In Sendai, Naoki Sugai’s opener for the hosts was cancelled out by Liu Jianye in the first half, but Hamdi Salihi popped up on 62 minutes to give Jiangsu a 2-1 lead.



However, Jiangsu needed to beat Vegalta by six goals to qualify, a result which never seemed likely. With no further scores both teams missed the cut — news which was greeted with wild celebrations by Buriram’s fans in Seoul.

Meanwhile, in Group F, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors edged fellow former champion Urawa Red Diamonds for a place in the knock-outs when they drew 0-0 with China’s Guangzhou Evergrande.



The scoreless draw in Guangzhou was enough to put the 2006 champion through on goal difference, despite Urawa’s 1-0 win over Thailand’s Muangthong United. Guangzhou, coached by Italy’s Marcello Lippi, finished top. — Agencies