Al Duhail's Adil Boulbina (right) celebrates with teammate Krzysztof Piatek after scoring a goal.
Doha, Qatar: Adil Boulbina scored a blistering hat-trick as Qatar’s Al Duhail SC handed Saudi Pro League champions Al Ittihad Club a thumping 4-2 defeat in the AFC Champions League Elite yesterday to boost the club’s hopes of a place in the knockout rounds.
A virtuoso performance saw the 22-year-old score in the fifth, 33rd and 53rd minutes before Krzysztof Piatek’s 74th minute goal ensured that a late brace from Karim Benzema was in vain for Sergio Conceicao’s side.
Victory moves Al Duhail onto seven points from five matches in the West Zone league phase while Al Ittihad remain on six points going into the final three games of the opening round of the competition.
It was a thunderbolt of a strike that gave Al Duhail the lead when Boulbina unleashed a drive from 25 yards, the Algerian’s left foot shot flying past Pedrag Rajkovic’s despairing dive to his left.
Sultan Al Brake threatened to double the hosts’ lead in the 16th minute when he was released down the left side of the penalty area, but Rajkovic managed to block the fullback’s attempt to score at the near post.
Moussa Diaby almost teed up Benzema to level for Al Ittihad moments later, the Frenchman bursting down the right to clip a lofted cross towards the former Real Madrid forward but his header was wide of Bautista Burke’s left post.
With 12 minutes left in the half Al Duhail doubled their lead, and it was Boulbina again who punished the Saudi side.
Captain Marco Verratti’s inch-perfect through pass from inside his own half released Boulbina, who beat Danilo Pereira to the ball before bearing down on goal and, after a clever feint caused Rajkovic to hesitate, the ball was thumped home.
The Al Ittihad goalkeeper made a pair of important saves two minutes after the restart, initially blocking Piatek’s attempt from the left before racing across his goal line to somehow keep out Boulbina’s effort.
However, Boulbina was not to be denied in the 53rd minute as he hit his third of the evening. Luis Alberto released him into the penalty area and, afterwrong-footing Jan Carlo Simic, Boulbina worked the ball onto his left to fire a low shot under the body of Rajkovic.
Burke pushed Fabinho’s header over the bar as Al Ittihad sought a way back into the game but, with 16 minutes left, Piatek hit the fourth with Rajkovic unable to keep out a powerful right-foot shot.
Benzema headed in two minutes later for Al Ittihad and then hit his side’s second with seven minutes remaining with a high quality right foot finish but it was not enough to spark a late comeback for the visitors.
Shabab Al Ahli beat Al Gharafa
Elsewhere, in Dubai, Shabab Al Ahli strolled to a comfortable 2–0 win over Al Gharafa SC tie at the Rashid Stadium.
The win gave the side from the United Arab Emirates their third win and took them to 10 points. The loss was Al Gharafa’s fourth, leaving the Qatar side on three points.
Kauan Santos gave the home side the lead in the ninth minute when he threaded his way past three Al Gharafa defenders and drilled a low shot that struck defender Aron Gunnarsson’s boot and went past a lunging Khalifa Ababacar into the bottom right corner.
Play slowed down until the 28th minute, when an unmarked Guilherme Bala doubled his side’s lead by coolly bending the ball from outside the area, again past a diving Ababacar and again into the bottom right.
Shabab Al Ali will look to continue their winning ways when they face Qatar's Al Saad while Al Gharafa play UAE’s Al Wahda FC, with both matches scheduled for December 23.
