Al Sadd star Hassan Al Haydos (fourth left) celebates with goal-scorer Rodrigo Tabata (third left) and team mates during their team's 5-0 win over Al Kharaitiyat at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday. QNB Stars League points leaders Al Sadd won 5-0.
Doha: Doha football giants Al Sadd yesterday delivered a commanding performance with a 5-0 demolition of bottom-placed Al Kharaitiyat.
Coached by Xavier Hernandez, hosts Al Sadd eased past Al Kharaitiyat in Week 12 of QNB Stars League.
After a goalless first half, Al Sadd - playing at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium - turned on the goal-fest in the second half for their 10th win of the season.
Veteran striker Rodrigo Tabata (69th and 79th minutes), Ali Asad (73rd minute) and Algerian forward Baghdad Bounedjah (82nd and 89th minutes) emerged as the goal heroes as Al Sadd extended their lead on the points table with a tally of 32 from 12 rounds.
Also yesterday, Al Ahli blanked Al Wakrah 2-0 at the Al Arabi Stadium while Al Sailiya handed Al Rayyan - playing under recently-inducted coach Laurent Blanc - their second loss in three matches.
Al Sailiya, coached by Sami Trabelsi, last night won 2-0 at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.
Nabil El Zhar (50th-minute penalty) and Hazem Shehata (64th minute) scored the goals for Al Ahli, who moved on to 22 points with their seventh victory.
Ninth-placed Al Wakrah have 13 points after succumbing to their seventh loss.
An own goal by Al Rayyan’s Shojae Khalilzadeh in the sixth minute and a slick penalty conversion by Brazilian forward Tiago Bezerra (16th minute) powered Al Sailiya to their fourth win of the season.
Al Sailiya now have 15 points while Al Rayyan remained on 16 points following their fourth defeat of the season.
Earlier in the day, Al Sadd yesterday looked a little stiff at the start of the Round 12 match as they struggled to open the scoring.
Evans Mensah, forward from Ghana, arrived to meet a perfect cross from Al Kharaitiyat's Moroccan midfielder Rachid Tiberkanine in the third minute. Under pressure from Musaab Khidir, Mensah managed a wayward header to waste the early opportunity at goal. In the 10th minute, Khadir launched a curling long cross for Bounedjah who – in close proximity of the Al Kharaitiyat goalmouth – was beaten to the dipping cross by keeper Shehab Ellethy.
Six minutes later, defender Abdelkarim Hassan sneaked into the Al Kharaitiyat box, but his left-footed flick narrowly missed the goalpost.
Al Kharaitiyat’s skipper Mohamed Aamir – on the edge of the Al Sadd box – found good angle on his volley, but keeper Meshaal Barsham dived to his left to stop the ball that eventually trickled away.
In the 24th minute, Al Sadd’s Spanish midfielder Santiago Cazorla almost found the target – with a right-footed drive – but the ball was deflected by the keeper with a dive to his left.
Eleven minutes later, after receiving a short tap from Hassan Al Haydous, Nam Tae-Hee hit the Al Kharaitiyat crossbar with a powerful shot.
In another Al Sadd move, Bounedjah clipped one from well inside the box, but the ball sailed close to the crossbar. In another header from close range in the 42nd minute, Bounedjah could not hit the net on a Cazorla corner kick.
In a rather ambitious move, Ivory Coast's Oumar Sako opted for a long-range shot from outside the Al Kharaitiyat box, but the ball sailed above the crossbar without causing damage in the 48th minute.
After a few hits and misses from both sides, Al Sadd found the net when substitute Tabata, after a cross from Al Haydous, deflected in the ball past the goalkeeper. The lead doubled when Bounedjah, stationed inside the Al Kharaitiyat box, slipped in a neat cross to unmarked team-mate Ali Asad, who found the net from close range.
Tabata made the most of fresh legs as he scored his second of the match with a slick shot after charging into the Al Kharitiyat box following a short pass from the right flank.
Bounedjah then found the net, drilling a right-footed shot from inside the box as Shehab stepped out to kill the move. Bounedjah scored one more goal, also from close range.
During Al Ahli's win over Al Wakrah, the first real chance at the goal came in the 26th minute when Al Ahli’s Ali Qaderi, off a cross from the right by Abdulrasheed Umaru, skied the ball.
Al Wakrah retorted with a free-kick taken by their spearhead Mohamed Benyettou three minutes later, but goalkeeper Yazan Naim parried it.
Al Wakrah had a chance to surge ahead in the 38th minute, but Cristian Ceballos failed to nod home the ball, headed goalwards by Ousmane Coulibaly following a free-kick taken by Murad Naji.
Nabil tested goalkeeper Mohammed Saeed with a grounder in the 45th minute as the first half drew to a close.
Five minutes after resumption, Al Ahli took the lead, with Nabil converting a penalty awarded after Lucas Mendes fouled him.
Al Ahli pressed hard and were successful a second time as Hazem found the target with a long shot from deep on the left.
The goal was initially ruled offside, but referee Abdulrahman Al Jassim allowed it to stand after referring to the VAR.
