Al-Hilal powered into the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League Elite with a 7-0 demolition of South Korean side Gwangju in Jeddah.

The Saudi Pro League champions, who are targeting a record-extending fifth title in Asia's premier club competition, were 3-0 up by half-time on Friday and never looked back.

Jorge Jesus' hosts hit the front through Sergej Milinkovic-Savic's glancing header in the sixth minute, then Yassine Bounou denied Jasir Asani an immediate equaliser.

And Al-Hilal made the visitors rue that missed opportunity as Marcos Leonardo made it 2-0 with a first-time finish in the 25th minute, while Salem Al-Dawsari slotted home a third eight minutes later.

Aleksandar Mitrovic got in on the act by turning in a Milinkovic-Savic cross 10 minutes into the second half, though Al-Hilal had to wait until the 79th minute to add a fifth through Malcolm.

Substitute Nasser Al-Dawsari added a deflected sixth soon afterwards, and Abdullah Al-Hamddan blasted home to complete the scoring two minutes from time.

Al-Hilal will face the winners of Saturday's quarter-final between fellow Saudi side Al-Ahli and Thailand's Buriram United in the last four, with the latter stages of the competition being played entirely in Jeddah.

Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr face Yokohama F. Marinos in another quarter-final, while Kawasaki Frontale take on Qatar's Al-Sadd.

7-star performance, 4 stars shining  pic.twitter.com/CE4kh8KsXV

— AlHilal Saudi Club (@Alhilal_EN) April 25, 2025

Data debrief: Gwangju blown away

The gigantic budgets available to Saudi Arabia's top teams make them favourites in the AFC Champions League Elite, and the gulf in quality on display on Friday was stark.

Al-Hilal fired off 20 shots to Gwangju's four, creating a total of 3.1 expected goals (xG) to the visitors' 0.38.

They also had 29 touches in the penalty area to Gwangju's 12, with Malcolm and Mitrovic each matching the visitors' shot tally for the game on their own.

Al-Hilal made a flying start with Milinkovic-Savic scoring their earliest goal in this season's AFC Champions League Elite, after five minutes and 17 seconds. 

And when Salem Al-Dawsari struck the third, it was game over. His nine goals in the AFC Champions League Elite this season are more than any other player.