Al Duhail's Tahseen Mohammed Jamshid (left) and Al Sadd's Sekou Oumar Yansane in action.
Doha, Qatar: Substitute Tahseen Mohammed Jamshid struck in the fourth minute of stoppage time as Al Duhail snatched a dramatic 3-2 victory over arch-rivals Al Sadd in the Qatar Stars League at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium yesterday.
The defeat left defending champions Al Sadd with a second successive QSL loss after opening their campaign with four straight wins, while Al Rayyan extended their lead at the top to 14 points after being held to a goalless draw by Al Gharafa at Thani Bin Jassim Stadium.
Razvan Lucescu’s Al Sadd remained on 12 points from six games, level with Al Arabi and Al Duhail, while Al Shamal were fifth with nine points.
Jean-Charles Castelletto and Sultan Al Brake put Al Duhail two goals ahead inside the opening half-hour, but Al Sadd fought back through Giovani and Yusuf Abdurrisag to level before the break.
Tahseen then settled the contest late, capping a thrilling finish.
Al Duhail started brightly, with Al Sadd goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham denying Marco Verratti and Almoez Ali early on. Castelletto opened the scoring in the ninth minute, rising highest to meet Bassem Al Rawi’s precise corner from close range.
Barsham continued to keep Al Duhail at bay, saving Almoez’s effort towards the bottom-left corner, while Krzysztof Piatek fired narrowly wide.
Boubakary Soumare, Assim Madibo and Castelletto kept up the pressure before Al Duhail doubled their lead in the 28th minute. Piatek collected a through ball on the left and cut it back for Al Brake, whose touch was enough to beat Barsham.
Al Sadd responded, with Salah Zakaria saving Abdurrisag’s attempt before Giovani pulled one back in the 32nd minute. The Brazilian finished Roberto Firmino’s cutback as the Al Duhail goalkeeper moved to deal with the assist.
Al Sadd seized the initiative and drew level in first-half stoppage time, with Abdurrisag firing home from outside the box after another assist from Firmino.
The sides resumed with an open exchange, with Al Duhail creating much of the early pressure.
Tahseen, who came on for Almoez in the 51st minute, tested Barsham from distance before VAR ruled out Castelletto’s goal for handball in the 75th minute.
Zakaria then denied Akram Afif as the contest headed towards a dramatic finish.
Al Duhail piled on the pressure in stoppage time. Barsham saved Castelletto’s attempt before Piatek’s effort from the rebound took a defender’s deflection and struck the left post. Tahseen reacted quickest to the loose ball, slotting home the winner despite a deflection off Boualem Khoukhi.
“We put in a great effort against a tough opponent,” Al Duhail’s Al Rawi said after the win.
“This was a very important victory for our journey ahead, and now we need to focus on the upcoming matches.”
Al Gharafa's Adam Mohamed Ounas (left) vies for the ball possession with Al Rayyan's Julien De Sart.
Meanwhile, Al Rayyan had to settle for a point against Al Gharafa despite creating several chances in their goalless draw.
Roger Guedes struck the crossbar as Al Rayyan looked to take the lead, while Al Gharafa responded with Frank Magri being denied by goalkeeper Mahmoud Abunada.
Gregore, Guedes and Julien De Sart made further attempts to put Al Rayyan ahead, but the stalemate persisted at half-time. Al Gharafa goalkeeper Khalifa Ababacar was kept busy after the restart, saving attempts from Diogo Amaro and Ahmed Alaa as Al Rayyan piled on the pressure.
Further efforts from Otavio and Aleksandar Mitrovic were also parried as Al Gharafa held on to rescue a point.
Al Gharafa moved to five points in 10th place, two clear of Qatar SC and four ahead of bottom side Al Sailiya.
