Al Hilal reached the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League Elite in Jeddah on Friday as Jorge Jesus' Saudi Pro League side thrashed Gwangju of South Korea 7-0 to move closer to a record-extending fifth continental title.

Goals from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Marcos Leonardo and Salem Al-Dawsari in the opening 33 minutes set the four-time champions on their way, with Aleksandar Mitrovic, Malcom, Nasser Al-Dawsari and Abdullah Al-Hamdan adding to their tally after the break.

The result, at a raucous King Abdullah Sports City Stadium, means Al Hilal will meet the winners of Saturday's quarter-final between fellow Saudi Pro League side Al Ahli and Thailand's Buriram United.

Milinkovic-Savic got the Saudi side off to the perfect start in the sixth minute, the midfielder breaking away from his marker to meet Salem Al-Dawsari's corner with a header that beat Kim Kyeong-in from the edge of the six-yard box

Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou almost immediately denied the Koreans the chance to hit back, keeping out Jasir Asani's effort after the Albanian winger had been played through behind the Al-Hilal defence.

Gwangju were made to regret their mistake in the 25th minute when Leonardo doubled Al Hilal's lead, the Brazilian beating Kim low and near his near post with a first-time shot from Malcom's cutback.

Eight minutes later, Salem Al-Dawsari broke the deadlock when he collected Leonardo's through ball from deep inside the Al Hilal half and beat the Gwangju defence before calmly slotting home to Kim's right.

Mitrovic added the fourth 10 minutes into the second half when he made no mistake with a first-time finish from Milinkovic-Savic's cross from the right.

Malcom beat Kim 11 minutes from time and substitute Nasser Al-Dawsari's deflected shot gave Al Hilal a sixth five minutes later. Al-Hamddan completed Gwangju's humiliation with an unstoppable right-footed shot in the 88th minute.

The final stages of the revamped Asian Champions League Elite will be played in Jeddah, with Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr taking on Yokohama F Marinos on Saturday.

Kawasaki Frontale of Japan take on Al-Sadd of Qatar on Sunday, with the semi-finals taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday. The final will be played on 3 May.