Al Ahli leave it late to defeat Al Wakrah

Two goals in two minutes ensured that Al Ahli came back from behind to defeat Al Wakrah 2-1 to register their first victory in four QSL matches.  

The Brigadeers have summer signing Firmin Mubele to thank as he scored with ten minutes to go, to deny Wakrah a share of the spoils.The first half was a quiet affair, with both sides barely registering any chances of note.

However the second half sprung into life on the 55^th minute.  Portuguese midfielder Rúben Amorim produced a moment of magic to edge the blue waves in front. The former Benfica star’s cheeky lob lofted over Ahli stopper Amer Dosari, to give Mauricio Larriera’s side the lead.

Ahli began to find their way back into the tie, and could have had an equalizer on the 77^th minute. Firmin Mubele’s powerful shot was eventually saved by Wakrah stopper Hassan Idriss. However it didn’t take long for Al Ahli to find a way back into the match. 



Iranian midfielder Mojtaba Jabbari linked up well with captain Meshal Abdullah in the box on the 79^th minute, ending in a sumptuous right footed shot that arrowed into the right-hand corner of Hassan Idriss’s goal. The finish matched the quality of the buildup play from Ahli, from that point onwards the tie shifted in the favour of the Brigadiers.

A minute later, Ahli had the lead thanks to Mubele. The Congolese striker converted from close range to leave the Al Ahli faithful in raptures. The man who was slated as the replacement for compatriot Alain Dioko has taken his time to find his feet in the QSL, however this timely strike will serve to boost his side in the second half of the QSL season.

In the remaining 10 minutes, Wakrah did push hard for an equalizer. However Al Ahli did hold out to register their first victory in four QSL matches.
 

Isa saves the day for El Jaish

An 83^rd minute strike from super sub Yasir Abubakar Isa helped El Jaish snatch a 2-1 victory over Al Sailiya on Sunday evening. This result meant that Jaish have now registered three consecutive wins while their opponents Sailiya have now suffered two back to back losses after going on a four-match winning spree.

Jaish got off to an ideal start when striker Abderrazzaq Hamedallah gave them a lead in the 12^th minute. The Moroccan latched on a long ball from the deep and though his first attempt was thwarted by Sailiya keeper Gergory Gomis, Hamedallah was able to dispatch the ball into the back of the net in the second attempt.

The Soldiers looked like going into the break with a one-goal advantage but Sailiya were able to find an equalizer in the closing minutes of the first half. In the 39^th minute, Sayaf Mohsin curled in a great free kick and Abdulgadir Ilyas was able to direct into the goal with a back heel. Jaish stopper  Khalifa Ndiaye got a hand to it but it rebounded off him into the goal.



The second half saw both teams searching for the lead. Despite Jaish being the stronger team on paper, Sailiya grew in confidence in the second half, taking the battle to their opponents. Status quo remained in the match and that could have prompted Jaish coach Sabri Lamouchi to bring on Isa in place of Wagner Ribeiro. The replacement bore fruit in the 83^rd minute, just when it looked like a draw was on the cards.

Isa started the move when he passed to Romarinho and then continued his run inside the box. Meanwhile Jaish’s twinkle-toed Brazilian weaved his way through the Sailiya defence but just when he was able to pull the trigger the ball was deflected towards Isa who made no mistake with his finish.

This hard-earned win will further boost the confidence of the Jaish team who are now in second place in the QSL table. Sailiya will feel robbed of a point but they can take heart from the strong performance that they showed here, which will help them go into the break with their head held high.