Alkass Digital
Doha: Al Sailiya yesterday shocked defending champions and hot favourites Al Duhail 5-4 on penalties after a 2-2 draw in a dramatic quarter-final of the 51st Amir Cup at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday.
Mohammed Muntari gave Hernan Crespo’s side lifeline with a last-gasp header (90+5 minutes) to take the quarter-final into penalty shootout that saw Mirghani Al Zain-coached Al Sailiya converting all their shots.
A Luiz Junior strike in Al Duhail’s final attempt in the shootout hit the post as Majdi Siddiq scored the winning penalty for Al Sailiya.
Al Sailiya, who are struggling on the bottom of QNB Stars League (QSL) standings, were impressive from the start and took the lead through a spot kick from Mehrdad Mohammadi in 18th minute, which was cancelled by Nam Tae-hee in 31st minute for Al Duhail.
A Carlos Strandberg’s goal in 69th minute took the Peregrines ahead again before Muntari equalised in stoppage time.
The defeat ended Al Duhail’s dream of completing a quadruple this season. They recently won the Ooredoo Cup and Qatar Cup titles and are leading the QSL standings.
It was a second upset result in the last-8 stage after Al Shahania stunned Al Gharafa 4-3 in penalty shoot-out after a 3-3 draw on Sunday. For Al Zain, who recently replaced veteran Sami Trabelsi, it was his first major win as Al Sailiya coach.