Indignant boss Giorgos Donis slammed “very stupid” questions about his future after Al Hilal had an AFC Champions League final berth snatched from them in the last minute by Al Ahli.
The Crescent appeared on course for a second successive appearance in the continental decider as the clock ticked into the 94th minute.
Utility man Kwon Kyung-won then struck a half-volley via the back of team-mate Habib Fardan, securing a dramatic 4-3 aggregate triumph and sending Rashid Stadium into raptures.
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A grilling from the dozens of Saudi Arabian journalists who had made the short trip to Dubai followed, which the ex-Blackburn Rovers and Greece midfielder ferociously repelled.
“We played like 30 games and we won 25, we played in the semi-final and we lost in the last minute,” said Donis, who took the Hilal job in February.
“I’m very proud of my team because they worked very hard in all of this period.
“I know it’s hard but we have a lot of targets and to win every target and this question, in this period, is very stupid.”
Hilal started sluggishly after a 1-1 draw in the first leg, going behind 2-0 on the night thanks to goals from Lima and Everton Ribeiro.
A change of shape seemed to ill-icit a change of fortune, Ailton and Carlos Eduardo appearing to send them through on away goals prior to Kwon’s timely intervention.
“It’s very hard for us because we lost the game in the last minute,” said Donis. “I’m a person who recognises my faults.
“I was afraid today from the beginning of the game.
“We lost 35, 30 minutes and we had a very bad performance in the first 30 minutes.
“We were unlucky because al Ahli scored 2-0 in the last minute of the first half but we never gave up.
“We tried a lot in the second half and we were better in the second half, we played very good football.
“We created a lot of chances and we changed the game and we had the opportunity to get the ball to win some free kicks, but we lost that chance. I accept it is my fault.”
