Al Sadd’s Mostafa Mashaal celebrates after scoring his team’s opening goal against Al Duhail.
Doha, Qatar: Mostafa Mashaal and Rafa Mujica scored in the second half as defending champions Al Sadd defeated 10-man Al Duhail 2-0 in a crucial Ooredoo Stars League (OSL) clash at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday.
The win lifted Al Sadd to 34 points, ahead of Al Gharafa on goal difference and just one behind leaders Al Duhail, who suffered their third defeat of the season.
After a goalless first half, Al Sadd gained the upper hand following a red card for Ibrahima Bamba for violent conduct in the 52nd minute. Mashaal opened the scoring in the 70th minute with a one-touch finish after a precise pass from Boualem Khoukhi, before Rafa Mujica sealed the win in the fifth minute of stoppage time, assisted by Hassan Al Haydos.
“I congratulate the players, staff, and Al Sadd fans on this crucial victory. It was our most important match of the season, like a final, and we’re thankful for the three points,” said Mashaal after the match.
“This win puts us back in the title race. We’ll keep the pressure on the leader and focus on winning the upcoming matches.”
At Thani Bin Jassim Stadium, Al Gharafa maintained their fine form, scoring two goals in either halves to beat Qatar SC 4-2.
Al Gharafa players celebrate a goal against Qatar SC yesterday.
Mohammed Muntari (first minute), Yacine Brahimi (29th minute, penalty), Seydou Sano (59th minute) and Rodrigo Machado (73rd minute) scored Al Gharafa’s goals while Qatar SC benefitted from an own goal by Matias Nani (34th minute) before Carlinhos scored for them in the (52nd minute).
Qatar SC stayed seventh with 19 points following the defeat.
Meanwhile, a double strike from skipper Baghdad Bounedjah proved more than a handful as Al Shamal prevailed over Al Khor 2-0 in other match at the Al Khor Stadium.
Algerian striker Bounedjah struck superbly and within a span of 10 minutes (23rd and 33rd minutes) to shock the rivals.
Their seventh win of the league championship saw Al Shamal move on to 22 points, while Al Khor remained rooted in bottom 12th spot with seven points, suffering their 11th defeat.
