Al Rayyan’s Ahmed Alaa (second left) celebrates with teammates after scoring against Al Sadd during the Qatar Stars League match at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday.
Doha, Qatar: The Qatar Clasico lived up to expectations as Al Rayyan produced a sensational 4-3 victory over defending champions Al Sadd in a seven-goal thriller at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday to return to the top of the Qatar Stars League standings.
The victory lifted Al Rayyan to 21 points, level with Al Duhail but ahead on goal difference. Al Sadd remain third on 18 points, three behind the leaders and four ahead of fourth-placed Al Arabi.
In a match full of twists and attacking football, Al Rayyan looked to have taken firm control after scoring four goals in the first half, but Al Sadd fought back to set up a tense finish before the visitors held on for three valuable points.
Ahmed Alaa set the tone with an early opener in 10th minute before Otavio doubled Al Rayyan’s lead three minutes later. Roberto Firmino pulled one back for Al Sadd in 21st minute, but Roger Guedes restored the two-goal cushion just a minute later.
Ahmed Alaa then struck again to make it 4-1 before half-hour mark, giving Al Rayyan a commanding advantage.
However, Al Sadd kept themselves in the contest as Giovanni Henrique scored their second goal three minutes before the interval. The hosts had a chance to reduce the deficit further in first-half stoppage time, but Akram Afif missed a penalty as Al Rayyan went into the break with a 4-2 lead.
Al Sadd returned with greater urgency after the restart and Afif made amends by scoring midway through the second half to bring the defending champions within a goal.
With the contest wide open, Al Sadd pushed forward in search of an equaliser, while Al Rayyan looked to exploit the spaces on the counter-attack. The visitors, however, stood firm to secure a memorable victory.
Lusail SC’s Khaled Mohammed Saleh (left) and Khaled Walid Mansour celebrate a goal.
Two-goal hero Ahmed Alaa said the team had specifically worked on his opening goal in training.
“We actually practised that first goal yesterday. We knew how the goalkeeper plays, and we worked on it in training. For the first, I read the goalkeeper’s movement, while the second was a textbook header,” he said.
He also dedicated the victory to the Al Rayyan supporters, praising their backing.
“This is the result of a collective effort by the players, coaching staff, management and fans. I’d like to thank the fans and dedicate this victory to them. Hopefully, we can continue to make them proud and maintain this level of performance."
Lusail snatch late win
over Qatar SC
Earlier, Lusail SC secured a dramatic 3-2 victory over Qatar SC with Hamidreza Firouzi scoring the winning goal in the 86th minute at Al Khor Stadium yesterday.
The victory continued an impressive run for the QSL debutants, who moved up to fifth place with 12 points, while Qatar SC remained 11th on six points. Rodrigo put Lusail ahead from the penalty spot in the 18th minute, but Joao Pedro levelled for Qatar SC with another penalty seven minutes before half-time.
Qatar SC completed their comeback early in the second half when Yohan Boli scored in the 52nd minute to put his side 2-1 ahead. Lusail responded quickly, with Khaled Mansour scoring equaliser in the 56th minute.
The match appeared to be heading for a draw before Firouzi struck four minutes from full time to give Lusail all three points.
