QSL champions Al Rayyan scored late in the second half stoppage time to secure a 1-1 draw against title rivals El Jaish in a pulsating QSL tie yesterday evening. El Jaish took a first half lead through captain Seidou Keita and dominated the tie throughout. Despite being second best for most of the match, Al Rayyan grabbed an equaliser in the 93rd minute with a powerful shot from Spanish striker Sergio Garcia.
Jaish expressed their attacking intentions as early as the fifth minute of the match, with Brazilian attacker Romarinho making a run, beating a host of Al Rayyan players before skewing his shot just wide.
Sabri Lamouchi’s side looked composed on the ball and carved out their second chance of the evening fifteen minutes on the clock — a smart pass from Romarino to Sardor Rashidov. The Uzbek player unleashed a shot from a tight angle, when he should have crossed it for his teammates.
Jaish finally made their dominance count in the 20th minute with the opening goal of the match. A cross from right back Murad Naji was missed by Romarinho, the ball falling to midfielder Mohamed al-Yazeedi, who calmly knocked the ball back to Seidou Keita. Keita unleashed a powerful shot that deflected slightly off Musa Haroon and found its way into the back of the net.
The QSL champions looked out of sorts in the early exchanges, and finally registered their first chance of note with half an hour gone.
Rayyan defender Khaled al-Zakiba picked up the ball from a throw in on the left side and juggled the ball; his shot from distance was well wide of Khalifa Abacar’s goalmouth.
Growing in confidence, Rayyan had two further chances to score an equaliser before the half time break. Slick build up play resulted in a perfect cross from Ahmed Alaaeldin. However, recipient Abdurahman al-Harazi missed his shot completely.
Alaaeldin also had a say in the final chance of the half, but a poor first touch put the ball out of play from a delicious chipped pass from Sergio Garcia. El Jaish went into the half-time break leading 1-0.
Rayyan came out in the second half with renewed vigour, and feasibly should have had a penalty minutes from the restart. Jaish defender Lucas Mendes brought down Alaaeldin in the box, however the referee pointed for a goal kick to the disbelief of the Rayyan players.
The Lions dominated possession in the second half and created a couple of half chances as the tie progressed. South Korean international Koh Myong-jin delivered a low cross into Rodrigo Tabata but the Qatar international stumbled at the vital moment and failed to get the shot away.
Whilst in the 55th minute, Al Rayyan captain Tabata found al-Harazi with a fine through ball but Jaish keeper Abacar was quick to rush off his line to deny Qatar Youth international with a sprawling save.
Michael Laudrup’s side found an equaliser in spectacular circumstances late into the second half stoppage time. Al-Harazi made a strong run on the right hand side, and played the ball off to Spanish striker Sergio Garcia. Rayyan’s number nine unleashed a powerful shot into the top left hand corner to give his side a share of the points.