Al-Sadd had to be satisfied with a point after drawing 1-1 with Qatar SC in their QNB Stars League Round 11 clash which was played on Monday at the Suhaim bin Hamad Stadium.
The Wolves increased their tally to 29 points and ended the first phase of the league at the top of the table.
Qatar SC opened the scoring in the 31st minute through Anthony Okpotu, and then Santi Cazorla equalised for Al Sadd in the 42nd minute from a penalty.
The match got off to an exciting start with both sides looking to make an early breakthrough. In the 7th minute, Hassan Al Haydos sent a cross from the right wing and Abdelkarim Hassan met it but the keeper kept the ball out to deny him.
Despite coming up with further attempts, Al Sadd were unable to carve out good enough chances as the first half went on.
Then, in the 31st minute, Qatar took the lead. After Tarek Salman failed to clear the ball in the box, Okpotu tapped in from close range.
Al-Sadd’s reply came from the penalty spot in the 42nd minute, with Santi Cazorla making no mistake with his strike. The penalty had been awarded after a foul on Baghdad Bounedjah by Ali Karimi.
The first half thus went on to end in a 1-1 stalemate. At the beginning of the second half, Xavi sent on Ali Asad in place of Tarek Salman as he looked to strengthen the attack and break the deadlock. In the 54th minute, Mohammed Waad delivered a cross from the left but the ball went out off Ali Asad.
Rodrigo Tabata then came on as Al-Sadd’s second substitute, replacing Mohammed Waad, and Al-Sadd continued to put pressure on Qatar’s defence, but no goal materialised.
Bounedjah had an opportunity in the 74th minute after a cross from Hassan Al-Haydos, but the Algerian international’s header went over the crossbar.
Despite their best efforts, the Al-Sadd players were unable to score and the match went on to end in a 1-1 draw.
MATCH DETAILS
Al Sadd x Qatar SC (QNB Stars League Round 11)
Venue:
Suhaim bin Hamad Stadium
Lineups:
Al Sadd: Meshaal Barsham, Pedro Miguel, Abdelkarim Hassan, Jung Woo-young, Tarek Salman (Ali Asad), Guilherme Torres, Santi Cazorla, Hassan Al Haydos (Yousuf Abdurisag), Mohammed Waad (Rodrigo Tabata), Baghdad Bounedjah, Nam Tae-hee
Qatar SC: Jassim Al Hail, Mohammed Salem, Ahmed Fadhel (Majed Aman), Mehdi Berrahma, Antony Okpotu (Omar Al Emadi), Ali Karimi, Youcef Belaili, Nasser Bakhsh (Eissa Ahmed), Khaled Mahmoudi, Alejandro Gimenez, Hamid Ismail
Result:
1-1
Goals:
Antony Okpotu 31’
Santi Cazorla 42’ (P)
Bookings:
Youcef Belaili 18’
Abdelkarim Hassan 30’
Mohammed Waad 50’
Referees:
Salman Falahi (main referee)
Saoud Ahmed (assistant 1)
Abdulmajeed Al Korbi (assistant 2)
Mohammed Al Mazeed (fourth official)
