Al Ain got their Asian Champions League Champions campaign on track without top scorer Asamoah Gyan as they won 1-0 win at Uzbekistan giants Pakhtakor.
Gyan missed the clash due to an infection and was absent together with playmaker Omar Abdulrahman.
Miroslav Stoch winger rocketed in the only goal from the edge of the box in style, but was dismissed with 15 minutes still to play following an off-the-ball incident.
His team-mates dug in admirably, victory securing top spot in Group B at the half-way stage with two of the three subsequent fixtures to be played at home.
“The most important thing was the victory. We had four or five good chances to score but we didn’t take them,” Zlatko said Dalic, whose side will host the Uzbeks at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium in three weeks’ time.
“We won the match and collected three points which I hope will help us qualify for the next stage.
“Stoch made a big mistake as our team had to play almost 20 minutes without him. We should respect our opponents and the referees.”