Meshal the man for Al Ahli.
Al Ahli dented Al Arabi’s top 4 ambitions with an impressive 3-1 win on Friday in the QSL match of the week. The game also saw Ahli with Captain Mesahel Abdulla scoring his 100th career goal in a tense clash at Al Ahli Stadium.
Abdulla opened the scoring as early as the 8th minute of the round 23 derby clash. The veteran Qatari attacker outran his marker and clipped the ball past Al Arabi goalkeeper Rajab Hamza for his side's opening goal and his 100th strike in the QSL.
Ahli looked the better side in the first half, and created a host of key chances. In the 17th minute, Mouchiane Iajour’s header rattled the Al Arabi crossbar from a corner. Iajour was amongst the action on the 30th minute, with a powerful run bewildered the Arabi backline. However his close range effort narrowly missed the crossbar after a fine save from Arabi stopper Rajab Hamza.
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Two minutes before the first-half whistle, Al Ahli skipper Meshal Abdulla curled a beautiful shot towards the Al Arabi goal but his placement went agonizingly close to the goalpost. Despite their chances Ahli couldn’t convert their dominance with further goals, the first half ended 1-0 to the home side. As the teams walked off the pitch, Al Ahli star Meshal Abdullah was presented with a jersey with '100' emblazoned on it by a team official.
Ahli doubled their lead two minutes from the restart courtisey of Mouchiane Iajour. A powerful run and shot inside the Arabi area rocketed past Rajab Hamza to leave the Al Ahli faithful in raptures. Arabi pushed hard to get back into the tie, but Yusef Adam’s side weathered the storm and effectively killed off the game in the 60th minute.
Summer signing Mubele picked up a lose rebound and clip a low shot into Al Arabi net with goalkeeper Kassim woefully out of place. The third goal capped of a fine performance from Ahli who looked the better side.
Arabi did grab a late consolation goal from their captain Paulinho, but it proved to be too little too late for Gianfranco Zola’s team. The result leaves Arabi in 6th place in the QSL standings, with their hopes of Qatar Cup qualification severly in the balance. Whilst for Al Ahli, this win has pushed them up to 9th further away from the QSL relegation zone.
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