Al-Sadd clinched the QNB Stars League title after a 3-0 win over Umm Salal in the Round 18 game which was played at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium on Sunday.
The result saw the Wolves establish an unassailable 13-point lead over closest rivals Al-Duhail, with four games to go.
Baghdad Bounedjah scored the opening goal for Al-Sadd in the 34th minute, and Yousuf Abdurisag doubled the advantage in the 51st minute. Rodrigo Tabata then came off the bench to net the third and final goal in stoppage time.
Al-Sadd began the game on the front foot, and carved out some chances early on. Nam Tae-hee struck a powerful shot in the 12th minute, but it went out with a deflection. Akram then dribbled his way down the left wing and sent in a cross, only for Bounedjah’s shot to miss the target.
In the 30th minute, Nam’s cross was headed towards goal by Bounedjah but Umm Salal keeper Baba Malick expertly tipped it over the bar for a corner.
Four minutes later, Bounedjah broke the deadlock. Yousuf Abdurisag provided the assist, sending a low cross into the six-yard box for the Algerian international to tap in past the keeper.
That was how the first half would end, with Al-Sadd taking a one-goal lead into the tunnel.
After the break, Al-Sadd picked from where they had left off. In the 49th minute, Bounedjah’s blistering shot cannoned back off the woodwork. Two minutes later, the Wolves managed to score again. Hassan Al Haydos set Yousuf up in the box with a nicely timed pass, and the latter made no mistake with his dinked finish over the keeper to double Al-Sadd’s lead.
Following the second goal, Al-Sadd were able to play more comfortably. Xavi went on to make a slew of substitutions as the half progressed, and it was one such change that had a marked impact late on.
Tabata, who had come on for Akram Afif, scored the third goal with a sumptuous finish in the second minute of stoppage time. Then, the referee blew his whistle to signal for full-time, and the celebrations began as Al-Sadd secured their 15th league title.
MATCH DETAILS
Al-Sadd x Umm Salal (QNB Stars League Round 18)
Venue:
Jassim bin Hamad Stadium
Lineups:
Al-Sadd: Meshaal Barsham, Pedro Miguel (Musaab Khidir), Abdelkarim Hassan (Tarek Salman), Khoukhi Boualem, Guilherme Torres, Santi Cazorla (Salem Al-Hajri), Nam Tae-hee, Akram Afif (Rodrigo Tabata), Yousuf Abdurisag (Jung Woo-young), Hassan Al-Haydos, Baghdad Bounedjah
Umm Salal: Baba Malick, Omar Yahya, Aymen Abdennour, Roozbeh Cheshmi, Adel Alawi, Moses Orkuma, Anas Mubarak, Ismail Ebrahim, Rabeh Yahia, Ahmed Hammoudan, Kayke Rodrigues
Result:
Al-Sadd won 3-0
Goals:
Baghdad Bounedjah 34’
Yousuf Abdurisag 51’
Rodrigo Tabata 90+2′
Bookings:
Ismail Ebrahim 19’
Roozbeh Cheshmi 24’
Abdelkarim Hassan 45+1’
Rodrigo Tabata 90+3′
Referees:
Abdulhadi Al Ruwaili (main referee)
Majed Haders (assistant 1)
Nasser Al Dos (assistant 2)
Mohammed Al Shareef (fourth official)
Saoud Al-Athba (VAR)
Abdulmajeed Al Korbi (assistant VAR)
