Al Sadd players congratulate team-mate Rodrigo Tabata after the latter completed his hat-trick against Al Khor yesterday.
Al Sadd are unstoppable this season. ‘The Wolves’ are not just defeating their opponents - they are thrashing them, and yesterday it was another ruthless display of attacking football.
On their home turf, Xavi Hernandez-coached side crushed Al Khor 7-0 to continue their goal-fest that has seen them scoring 60 goals from 15 matches at an average of 4 goals per match. The closest side to reigning Amir Cup champions in terms of scoring are QSL champions Al Duhail, who have netted 37 times from 15 games.
Veteran Rodrigo Tabata emerged as star for Al Sadd yesterday, completing his first hat-trick of the season with goals in 36th, 49th and 57th minutes. Feared Algerian striker Baghdad Bounedjah also scored a brace (7th and 33rd minutes) to go top in the list of leading scorers with 17 goals this season.
Al Sadd's Baghdad Bounedjah celebrates after scoring his second goal against Al Khor yesterday.
Spanish star Santiago Cazorla converted a penalty in 41st-minute penalty while Ali Asad netted in 71st minute to put their name on the scoresheet.
Al Sadd consolidated their top spot with 41 points, 13 clear of second-placed Al Duhail after their emphatic victory in front of home fans.
In week 13, Al Sadd crushed Al Sailiya 8-0 and week 5, the Wolves hammered Al Ahli 7-1. Three times this season Al Sadd beat their rivals 5-0: Al Kharaitiyat twice and Al Sailiya once.
“We have taken a big step towards winning the title with a 13-point lead,” said Xavi yesterday while expressing his delight after big victory.
“We produced magnificent performance and I am very happy. I am happy with the performance of players, who have not played much before, including Suhail, Musab, Salem and Tabata, who performed more than excellent and deserve to be praised with the rest of the players,” Xavi added.
“We are enjoying the best moments of the season and we must benefit a lot from them.” he added.
Last night, Al Sadd were in total control against 11th placed Al Khor, who succumbed to their ninth defeat. The Wolves dominated their opponents rivals with 61 percent ball possession, unlike their first-leg game against Al Khor when both teams failed to break the deadlock. They were leading 4-0 at half-time and added three goals to complete the rout.
“We entered the match with the aim of winning and maintaining lead on the points table. When we put pressure on Al Khor, we had a good time in the first half by scoring four goals,” said Al Sadd’s Ahmed Suhail.
“The great result was achieved by the fact that we respected the Al Khor team and took nothing for granted. We converted the opportunities into goals and team work is the secret of Al Sadd’s strength in all matches in the league,” he added.
Meanwhile, 10-man Al Gharafa retained their third spot after they rallied to edge Al Kharaitiyat 2-1 at Al Ahli Stadium, in yesterday first match.
Captain Moiad Hassan scored goals in 77th and 79th minutes to secure full points for Al Gharafa after Mensah Evans scored for Al Kharaitiyat in the 70th minute.
With the win, Al Gharafa moved to 27 points while bottom-placed Al Kharaitiyat remained on six points.
Despite an aggressive display by Al Gharafa, Al Kharaitiyat did well to stop their opponents from scoring goals early in the match.
Ivory Coast striker Jonathan Kodjia created the first chance when he fired ball from the edge of the box, but Al Kharaitiyat’s goalkeeper Shehab Ellethy dived to his left to block the move.
Al Gharafa continued to attack in the first session with Sofiane Hanni, Ahmed Al Janehi, Yousef Muftah and Kodjia making attacks at regular intervals.
Al Kharaitiyat’s Rachid Tiberkanine, however also gave Al Gharafa scare when he sneaked into the box but his shot from close range was blocked by Tameem Al Muhaza.
Former champions Al Gharafa were dominant in the second half as well but the advantage went to Al Kharaitiyat after Al Gharafa’s Saeed Alhaj was sent off in the 67th minute. Majed Aman set Evans for the game’s opening goal.
After getting a neat lob from Aman, Evans charged into the box and fired a shot that caught a slight deflection of a dive by Al Muhaza and went into the net giving the keeper no chance to stop the ball.
However, the lead didn’t last for long as Hassan curled a clinical kick to score an equaliser, two minutes before scoring the winner off a Yousef Muftah cross.
In other match yesterday, Al Sailiya and Al Ahli played out a goalless draw at Al Ahli Stadium. Al Ahli remained on 6th position with 23 points while Al Sailiya also retained their 8th spot with 19 points.
