Al-Duhail’s Youssef Msekni kicks the ball past Lokomotiv’s goalkeeper Ignaty Nesterov during their AFC Champions League match yesterday.
Doha: Al Duhail continued perfect start with a 3-2 win over Uzbekistan’s PFC Lokomotiv while Al Rayyan displayed a brave show to earn an 1-1 draw against Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal as Qatari clubs enjoyed a good day at AFC Champions League yesterday.
At Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Al Duhail, who are in golden form, overcame a fightback from Lokomotiv to maintain their 100 percent record and stay top of Group B.
The QNB Stars League (QSL) leaders got off to a blistering start, with Youssef El Arabi scoring twice inside the first 20 minutes after being set up by Al Moez Ali on both occasions.
The Moroccan’s first goal came via a fierce low shot following a swift passing move in the ninth minute. In the 19th minute, El Arabi doubled the hosts’ lead by tapping in to an empty goal after Ali’s squared pass for his fourth AFC Champions League goal of the season.
El Arabi then turned provider to captain Youssef Msakni for Al Duhail’s third goal in the 25th minute. Msakni latched onto El Arabi’s precise through pass and deftly chipped Ignatiy Nesterov to give his side a firm 3-0 lead going into the break.
Lokomotiv looked a different side after the restart and duly pulled a goal back in the 57th minute, with substitute Nivaldo scoring with his first touch just moments after coming on. Two minutes later, Marat Bikmaev made it 3-2 after a lobbed finish over Al Duhail keeper Amine Lecomte.
However, despite pushing hard for an equaliser, Lokomotiv were unable to complete what would have been an impressive comeback.
Lokomotiv slumped to third place following the loss. The Uzbek side will now look to take revenge when they host Al Duhail in Tashkent on Matchday Four. In Riyadh, Michael Laudrup’s Al Rayyan held their nerves to share spoils with Al Hilal, spurred with packed home spectators at King Saud University Stadium.
The visitors came off the blocks racing and found the back of the net just three minutes into the game after captain Rodrigo Tabata’s pass found Mohsine Moutouali who fired a powerful strike from outside the box that went in off the post to put Al Rayyan in front.
Al Hilal regrouped quickly and came close to levelling the score in the ninth minute when Achraf Bencharki’s close range shot from a narrow angle was blocked by defender Ahmed Yasser.
Al Rayyan thought they had doubled their lead just before the half hour mark when Abderazak Hamdallah beat the goalkeeper, only to see his goal ruled out for offside. The Saudi side started the second half brighter and in the 58th minute, Bencharki sent an intelligent pass into the box for overlapping left-back Al Zori who struck with venom into the top right corner to earn his side a point on the night.
The 2017 runners-up remain without a win in the group and will next travel to Doha to face Al Rayyan, who have now drawn all their three games.
