Al Arabi secured a vital 1-0 win over Al Ahli in the 2024-2025 season QSL Cup Group A first-round match at the Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium of Qatar Sports Club on Friday.

Luiz Martin (64th minute) scored the lone goal of the match for The Dream Team, runners-up last season.

The match was evenly balanced between the two sides for most of the first half.

Al Arabi got their first real chance of the match in the 10th minute after Mohammed Alaaeldin got to the end of a long ball from centre half, but his overhead lob over the onrushing Al Ahli’s goalkeeper Yazan Naim went inches wide of the open net.

Al Ahli also made some threatening moves inside the final third of Al Arabi several times, with Julian Draxler and Idrissa Doumbia combining effectively to get under the skin of the Al Arabi’s defence, but the finishing of The Brigadiers’ forwards, especially Navid Dorzadeh, was their bane.

Despite the efforts of both teams, none of them was able to break through each other’s defence as the first half ended goalless.

Both teams came out determined to correct the lapses of the first half in the second and the match went a notch up with more interesting interplays.

Al Arabi finally broke the deadlock in the 63rd minute with a brilliant low-driven strike by Luiz Martin from a free-kick that sailed effortlessly into the right-hand side of Naim’s goal.

Al Arabi had an opportunity to extend their lead in the 82nd minute after being awarded a free-kick on the edge of the 18-yard box, but goalkeeper Naim did well to save Ahmed Moein’s well-placed strike and the subsequent rebound shot.

Much as both sides tried to change the narrative, the match ended with Al Arabi’s lone goal proving the difference between both sides.