Al Rayyan secured a vital 1-0 victory over Al Gharafa in a strong Round 2 clash (Group B) of the 2023-2024 season Ooredoo Cup at the Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium of Qatar Sports Club on Saturday.

Rodrigo Moreno scored the only goal of the match in the 10th minute with a well-placed shot from the edge of Al Gharafa’s 18-yard box following a precise pass from Rodrigo Tabata to send the fans into expected cheers.

Al Rayyan and Al Gharafa have three points and one point respectively.

Al Rayyan had a chance to increase their tally in the 33rd minute after Abdullah Al Ali was brought down by two Al Gharafa players towards the edge of Gharafa’s 30-yard area, but the subsequent free-kick was, however, wasted.

The match remained a ding-dong affair for much of the first half, with most of the chances falling to Al Rayyan, who were playing their first match in the tournament, but the scoreline remained the same as the teams headed for the dugout at the end of first half.

Al Rayyan continued to press hard on the resumption of second half and they could have increased their tally in the 58th minute had Moreno not missed after being set up by Thiago Mendes.

Gabriel Pereira came in to replace Tabata in the 61st minute.

Yacine Brahimi almost restored parity for Al Gharafa, who played a 3-3 draw with Al Markhiya in their opener, in the 68th minute after some darting runs, but his effort was pushed for a corner kick by goalkeeper Fahad Mohammed.

Six minutes later, Yohan Boli made a dangerous incursion into Al Rayyan’s defensive line with some impressive dribbling skill, but his attempt at goal was blocked for another corner kick.

Achraf Bencharki missed a golden opportunity to double the lead for Al Rayyan in the 85th minute as his penalty kick was blocked by goalkeeper Khalifa Abubaker.

In the dying minutes, Al Gharafa had a goal overruled by the VAR, much to the dismay of their vociferous supporters.

Khalifa Abubaker was called into action late into injury time following a surprising Bencharki shot from the edge of the 18-yard box, but the goalkeeper did well to parry the ball away for a corner kick.

The score remained the same at the final whistle and Al Rayyan went home victorious.