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<p>Qatar’s Al Sailiya went down fighting to Tajikistan’s Shahr Khodro 4-5 on penalties in the 2020 AFC Champions League play-off at the Al Duhail Stadium on Tuesday.</p><p>The tie-breaker was enforced after the match was goalless at the end of regular time and extra time.</p><p>Shahr Khodro advanced to Group B, which includes Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal, Shabab Al Ahli Dubai and Uzbekistan’s Pakhtakor.</p><p>Qatar’s Al Sadd and Al Duhail, the top two teams in the 2018-19 QNB Stars League, had qualified directly for the group stage of Asia’s premier club competition.</p><p>Al Sailiya and Al Rayyan, the third and fourth-placed teams, went into play-off to be eligible to make it to the tournament proper.</p><p>Shahr Khodro qualified to play Al Sailiya after they defeated Bahrain’s Riffa 2-1 at the Sharajah Stadium in the preliminary round on 25th January.</p><p>It was for the first time that Al Sailiya were having a taste of the AFC Champions League after producing their best-ever finish in the Qatar League last season.</p><p>Goalkeeper Mahdi Rahmati was the hero for Shahr Khodro, producing a brilliant shoot-out save to deny countryman Karim Ansari before Saeid Sadeghi struck the decisive blow after more than 120 minutes of hard-fought action.</p><p>Chances came at both ends in the first half and Al Sailiya came out firing after the break, with Mahir Yusuf drawing a fine near post save from Rahmati in the 52nd minute, before Ansari struck the crossbar shortly after.</p><p>But despite those near misses, the decisive goal failed to materialise, giving each side 30 minutes of extra time to decide their AFC Champions League destiny.</p><p>After 120 scoreless minutes, both sides found their shooting boots from the penalty spot.</p>