AFC
A late strike from substitute Khalid Muneer earned Al Duhail SC a 2-2 draw against Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal in their AFC Champions League Group C match in Doha yesterday. After a cagey start to the match, Al Duhail hit on the counter to score from the first real opportunity. Ahmed Yasser sent a cross-field pass for Abdullah al-Ahrak who broke the off side trap and pulled the ball back for Youssef El Arabi to hit first-time into the top corner in the 15th minute. Later, a quick exchange of passes deep into Al Duhail’s half saw the ball reach Mohamed al-Burayk down the right. The full-back crossed for Bafetimbi Gomis who went for the spectacular, but his overhead kick sailed high over the crossbar. The first half continued in the same
fashion with Al Hilal applying high pressure on their opponents and Rui Faria’s men depending on counter attacks to do the damage. Gomis pressed on Al Duhail goalkeeper Khalifa Ababacar, forcing him to concede a throw in which was quickly played, finding Mohamed Kanno who fired from inside the box. Ababacar spilled his save into the path of Gomis who pounced on the loose ball to fire home the equaliser at the half-hour mark. Al Hilal piled the pressure towards the end of the opening period and were close to doubling their lead through Carlos Eduardo who took Gomis’ cushioned pass on the half-volley but struck the crossbar seven minutes from half-time. After the break, Al Hilal continued on
the off ensive and Sebastian Giovinco started an attacking move the centre circle, moving the ball out to al-Burayk then Eduardo whose backheel pass found Hattan Bahebri. The Saudi international midfielder set up Gomis to drive an eff ort from the edge of the box into the bottom corner for his and Al Hilal’s second of the night. One minute into the three minutes of added time, Edmilson took possession of the ball inside Al Hilal box following a poor clearance. The Brazilian used his trickery to get past his marker and sent a cross that was deflected off a defender. Muneer controlled the ball with his head and volleyed into the far corner, leaving Al Mayouf helpless to save and earning his side a hard-fought point right at the death.