Soufiane Rahimi Becomes Al Ain’s King of Asia
Soufiane Rahimi needed one moment. He took it.
On a crisp night at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Nassr in town and the AFC Champions League Elite campaign just kicking off, the Moroccan forward wrote his name into Al Ain history with a single strike in a 4-0 demolition.
That goal was his 19th in Asian club competitions for Al Ain. One more than Asamoah Gyan. One more than Omar Abdulrahman. Clear at the top. Alone.
Rahimi passes Gyan and Abdulrahman
Rahimi walked into the tie locked on 18 goals in Asia, level with two of the club’s most iconic figures. Gyan, the Ghanaian great who lit up the UAE during a prolific spell. Abdulrahman, the homegrown maestro who came to define an era.
Ninety minutes later, the hierarchy had shifted.
His finish against Al Nassr pushed him to 19, giving him outright ownership of a record that had long belonged to, or been shared by, Gyan. For years, the Ghanaian’s tally stood as the benchmark for any Al Ain forward dreaming of continental impact.
Not anymore.
Rahimi’s name now sits alone at the summit of the club’s Asian scoring charts, his tally nudging past two of the most celebrated players ever to wear the violet shirt on the continental stage.
Gyan, now retired, can only watch from afar. Abdulrahman, no longer part of the squad, has seen his mark overtaken by a teammate from a different generation. The torch has been passed, not by ceremony, but by the clean, ruthless logic of goals.
A statement win, a statement season
The context of the record mattered. This was no routine group-stage tap-in.
Al Ain crushed Al Nassr 4-0 in their AFC Champions League Elite opener, a result that echoed around the region. Against a side led by Ronaldo and built for continental glory, the Emirati champions imposed themselves with authority.
Rahimi’s goal slotted neatly into that storyline. It wasn’t just a historic number; it was a symbol of where Al Ain stand right now. Fresh off winning the 2023/24 edition of the competition, they have returned to Asia not as hopefuls, but as one of the teams to beat.
The margin of victory underlined it. This is a side that believes it can go deep again. And Rahimi is at the heart of that belief.
From key man to standard-bearer
Over recent seasons, Rahimi has quietly shifted from important contributor to central figure in Al Ain’s continental ambitions. His goals have arrived in big moments, in knockout ties, in nights that decide whether a campaign drifts or ignites.
Now, with the record in his pocket and the new Champions League Elite format underway, the path is clear. Every match offers another chance to stretch the gap, to take the club’s Asian scoring mark to a height that may take years to reach again.
The pressure that once came with chasing Gyan’s total has flipped. The Moroccan is no longer the hunter. He is the mark everyone else must chase.
Gyan’s record once embodied Al Ain’s aspirations in Asia, a reminder of how far the club had come and how hard it is to dominate the continent. Rahimi’s 19th goal doesn’t erase that legacy; it adds a new chapter to it.
The question now is simple: how far can he push it, and how far can he drag Al Ain with him?
