Five months ago, Xavi Hernandez addressed the team’s fans and said that Al Sadd would bounce back strongly after his team suffered a shock loss to Persepolis FC in the last-16 tie of the AFC Champions League in September 2020.
Fast forward to today and the Wolves are living on that promise sweeping every title coming their way.
Yesterday, they clinched the prestigious QNB Stars League (QSL), with four games to spare lifting the Falcon Trophy for the 15th time after a 3-0 victory over Umm Salal on their home turf. The win took the Wolves to 50 points, giving them an unassailable lead of 13 points over second-placed and defending champions Al Duhail.
Feared striker Baghdad Bounedjah (34 minutes), Yusuf Abdurisag (51 minutes), and veteran Rodrigo Tabata (90+2 minute) scored goals for Al Sadd in the memorable win.
This QSL title triumph, coming without a defeat, is arguably Al Sadd’s best achievement in the league. The Xavi-coached side has so far won 16 matches besides playing drawing a couple of matches. They have scored a whopping 69 goals, maintaining a difference of +57 goals, also showing solid defence.
“We have created history by winning the QSL in such a fashion,” a jubilant Xavi said after captain Hasan Al Haydos lifted the Falcon Shield in front of home fans last night. “This is my first QSL title as a coach and I am very happy with the triumph,” said the Barcelona legend.
“I am happy to be in this group of players, management, and a technical and medical apparatus, who put together their efforts to win every tournament. I would like to thank Al Sadd’s fans specially, who continued their support throughout the season. We promise them to continue working hard to make them happy and win more championships for Al Sadd,” he added.
Having won the 2020 Amir Cup in December, Al Sadd also won the Qatar Cup on February 26 after beating Al Arabi last week.
With the QSL title, Al Sadd remains on course of a quadruple with Ooredoo Cup and Amir Cup 2021 still to be decided.
Yesterday, the Wolves started in their traditional attacking style keeping constant pressure on Umm Salal as they looked to seal the title early.
Striker Bounedjah along with Qatari star Akram Afif and Spaniard Santiago Cazorla started making early inroads to keep Umm Salal’s defense in check. The Algerian made his first attempt in the fourth minute but his shot from just inside the box didn’t pose much problem for Umm Salal goalkeeper Baba Malick.
Looking for an early goal, Al Haydos fired a shot from a long range and Umm Salal were lucky to thwart the attack after Malick collected the ball despite fumbling.
Roozbeh Mohammad was penalised with a yellow card for a handball as he tried to stop Nam Tae-hee’s attempted pass near the box. Referee Abdulhadi Alasmar Al Ruaile punished Umm Salal with a free kick but Al Haydos fired the ball wide from a good position.
When Al Sadd are playing, the oppositions’ goalkeepers remain under constant threat and Malick also received the same fate. However, he made some superb saves in the match including an effort in which he jumped to punch away Bounedjah’s header, off a long ball from Tae-hee.
However, the goalkeeper failed to resist the move in which an unmarked Bounedjah, put the ball in with a first-time flick to take Al Sadd ahead. Abdurisag assisted in the goal as Malick guarding his left corner had no chance with the ball landing in the opposite direction.
Al Sadd continued to assert pressure for more goals but had to return to the tunnel with a 1-0 lead. However, they returned with the same approach and added two goals in their tally to claim the victory.
Abdurisag netted Al Sadd’s second goal pushing the ball over Malick after a brilliant pass from Al Haydos. Tabata coming off the bench to replace Afif in the 72nd minute wrapped up a 3-0 victory with a brilliant hit in stoppage time. Malick had no chance to stop a left-footed drive from the veteran as Al Sadd clinched the Falcon Trophy in style.
Following the win, Al Sadd’s officials showered praise on the team for their title victory.
Mohamed Ghulam, Sports Director of Al Sadd Club, said: “We are happy to be crowned champions after a very special season. The team showed outstanding performance and proved its domination. All members of the squad deserve credit for the win. We salute the fans of Al Sadd for their support and it is the most beautiful gift for them."
Abdullah Al Barik, Director of Al Sadd football team, commented: “We have very great confidence in all players and their ability to continue the same approach in the future tournaments. Al Sadd always have the goal of winning the tournaments. We must commend the great effort of the players throughout the season.”
