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Al Arabi held Al Gharafa to a 1-0 QNB Stars League (QSL) victory yesterday at Thani Bin Jassim Stadium, keeping pressure on the league’s leaders Al Duhail.
The Dream Team did well to stop Al Gharafa after captain Abullah Hassan Al Marafi was dismissed for injuring an Al Gharafa player in the 67th minute. Tunisian star Youssef Msakni scored the crucial goal by converting a spot kick in the 38th minute.
Al Arabi maintained second place with 34 points after winning the postponed Round 10 match, two points behind Al Duhail, while Al Gharafa (23 points) dropped to sixth place after the defeat.
“I am pleased with the win, especially considering that we played without some of our key players in a challenging game. After yesterday’s victory, Al Arabi coach Younes Ali said, “The three points are significant in the crucial stage of the league and it will motivate us more in our next matches.
The coach continued, “The team has been consistent, but we should continue our diligence until the final round to achieve the desired result.
When the pitch-side monitor confirmed Islom Khujaev’s handball as he attempted to stop Rami Suhail, the Dream Team made a breakthrough after VAR denied Al Arabi’s appeal for a penalty kick at the halfway point. Msakni made no errors with his confident field goal to give Al Arabi the lead.
After a few exchanges in the second half, Homam Al Amin had a chance for Al Gharafa in stoppage time, but he shot wide. In an additional 10 minutes, the Cheetahs attempted several more times, but Al Arabi held on to score the most points.
Qatar SC moves up to fourth.
After their Round 10 match yesterday, Qatar SC mounted a strong comeback to defeat Al Ahli 3-1 and move up to fourth in the standings.
Aboubakr Mohammed’s corner kick put Al Ahli ahead thanks to Hossein Kanaani’s goal in the 44th minute, but Qatar SC responded forcefully in the second half by scoring three goals at Hamad Bin Khalifa Stadium.
After numerous goal-scoring attempts from Qatar SC, Badr Benoun’s outstanding header in the 72nd minute brought his team back into the game. Bashar Resan’s pass set up the goal.
Five minutes later, Eisa Palangi gave Qatar SC the lead with a left-footed goal, and substitute Raoul Danzabe Sanda sealed the victory in the 90+8th minute.
With their eighth victory of the year, Qatar SC increased their point total to 26, moving two points ahead of Al Wakrah, who dropped to fifth place.
In the other game yesterday, Umm Salal defeated Al Shamal 1-0 at Thani Bin Jassim Stadium thanks to a goal from Adel Al Sulaimane (90+6 minutes) in overtime. Umm Salal earned three points.
Jassem Al Hashemi of Al Shamal was also given the boot during the match’s closing seconds.
Following their ninth loss of the year, Al Shamal dropped to 14 points while Umm Salal increased to 13 points.
