The Peninsula
Al Duhail regained their two-point lead atop the QNB Stars League (QSL) edging Al Rayyan 4-3 in an exciting tie at Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium yesterday.
The Hernan Crespo-coached side moved to 45 points replacing Al Arabi, who slipped to second spot with defending champions Al Sadd placed third with 38 points.
Nicholas Cordova’s Al Rayyan battling to avoid relegation put up a gallant fight in a postponed game pushed due to the two teams’ participation in AFC Champions League.
The Lions took the lead in the 25th minute following a move from the right with Ivory Coast star Yohan Boli striking in the middle of the net from near the penalty spot after receiving a fine ball from Osamah Abdulkarim.
Al Duhail equalised in the 37th minute through a goal from Khaled Mohammed, who flicked a Ferjani Sassi back pass into the net from close range.
Sassi secured lead for the Red Knights before half-time with a rising header off captain Almoez Ali’s cross in added time.
Al Duhail came out strongly in the second half and were paid for their dominant show with a penalty after Dami Terawari’s rash tackle against Bassam Al Rawi.
Michael Olunga comfortably converted the penalty to make it 3-1 for Al Duhail in the 76th minute, with his 15th goal of the campaign to tie Al Wakrah’s Gelson Dala as top scorer.
After Sofiane Boufal pulled one back for Al Rayyan four minutes later, Almoez’s solo effort a couple of minutes later regained the two-goal cushion for Crespo’s side.
Boufal struck again in fourth minute of stoppage time but it was too late for Al Rayyan to find a much-needed equaliser as Al Duhail held on to the lead for three crucial points.
Defeat leaves Al Rayyan in ninth place in the QSL with 17 points, ahead of Al Shamal on goal difference.
Meanwhile, Al Markhiya and Al Shamal are seeking points in their postponed Week 9 fixture to be played at Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium today.
Al Markhiya, placed eighth in the standings with 18 points, are looking to stay clear of the relegation zone as Al Shamal – currently 10th – can jump up on the points table with a victory today.
Al Markhiya assistant coach Henk Duut was confident of a good performance from his side in the match.
“We are not worried about our position (eighth) in the table because we are confident of bettering it. We were not lucky in the last three matches and we presented a good level,” Duut said ahead of the match.
“The technical staff have worked hard to prepare the players through daily training and are confident that they will be at their best in the match to achieve victory,” he added.
Al Shamal assistant coach Talal Al Balooshi was expecting a difficult challenge from Al Markhiya in the match.
“It is a very important match just like the three other remaining matches in the league,” Al Balooshi told a press conference yesterday.
“We are considering these matches as finals. We have no choice other than winning and collecting the maximum number of points in order to move away from the danger zone in the league table. The technical staff were keen to correct the mistakes made by the players, which is done from time to time,” he added.