Al Harbi climbed above Askar Jadigerov to nod home at the back post after 33 minutes of the contest in Tashkent to send the Saudis top of the table with their second consecutive victory.

The hosts had the first real sight of goal after eight minutes when Victor Karpenko volleyed disappointingly wide when unmarked in the box.

Bunyodkor looked the more likely to strike first in the opening exchanges and Shavkat Salamov wasted a good opportunity in the 25th minute when, with time and space in the penalty area, he chested down a cross but scuffed his shot.

Al Ittihad began to look more threatening as the half wore on and Bunyodkor keeper Ignatiy Nesterov showed good reflexes to push Mohammed Al Rashid's side-foot volley from close range over the bar on the half-hour mark after the ball had ricocheted back into the forward's path.

It was not long before the visitors broke the deadlock as, three minutes later, Al Harbi out-jumped Jadigerov to meet a clipped cross at the back post and head past Nesterov.

Karpenko had another sight of goal six minutes before the break when Kamoliddin Murzoev's cross made its way through to the midfielder but his weak shot was gathered by keeper Mabrouk Zaid.

Karpenko fired narrowly wide from distance with Zaid scrambling across his goal just after the hour mark as Bunyodkor's search for an equaliser became increasingly urgent and Sasa Dordevic then wasted a glorious chance in the 63rd minute.

Zaid came for a free-kick but only succeeded in knocking the ball down to the Serbian in the box but he shot wide with the Al Ittihad keeper out of position and two defenders on the line.

Zaid made amends for his blunder with quarter of an hour to go when Soliev met a cross at the back post but the custodian was able to push his powerful close range header over the bar. He then managed to turn Salomov's corner over with the midfielder almost scoring direct from a set-piece.

The Saudis, though, were able to stand firm and repel the hosts over the closing minutes.

Azizbek Haydarov had one final chance in stoppage time but hit a 25-yard free-kick from a promising position straight into Zaid's grateful arms.