Lekhwiya sweep past ten man Al Arabi 4-1

Lekhwiya underlined their title credentials with a professional 4-1 victory over the ten men of Al Arabi. Goals from Nam Tae Hee and a hat-trick from Yusef El Arabi confirmed all three points for Djamel Belmadi’s side.
Al Arabi were reduced to ten men in the first half when Qatar international midfielder Ahmed Maqsoud was given his marching orders for two yellow cards. Paulinho missed a second half penalty for Al Arabi, but did pull back a consolation from Omar al-Amadi. Overall  it was a match to forget for head coach Gerardo Pelusso.
The tie started at a frantic pace and the hosts laid down an early signal of intent. Midfielder Ali Afif send a flying shot well over. Not to be undone Al Arabi winger Imoh Ezekiel raced away from the Lekhwiya defence on the counter and cut inside Chico Flores. However his strike was well wide.
Lekhwiya began to dominate the ball and created a real chance of note on the 19th minute. Midfielder Nam Tae Hee linked up well with striker Yusef al-Arabi. However Nam’s chipped shot was saved by Arabi keeper Rajab Hamza.
The tie was turning into a real midfield battle with both sides putting in crunching tackles. Lekhwiya continued to impress, and where pressing the Al Arabi defence well. This was underlined in the 34th minute when Djamel Belmadi’s side pounced on a misplayed Al Arabi pass from the back. However, Lekhwiya took their time on the ball and Ali Afif blazed his shot well wide.
The game turned on the 36th minute when Arabi midfielder Ahmed Maqsoud saw yellow for a tackle on Yusef al-Arabi. The resulting free-kick from Nam found his mark and curled the ball into the back of the net for his fifth goal of the season.
Minutes later Maqsoud saw red for a second yellow card after bundling down Ali Afif in the penalty box. Moroccan international Yusef al-Arabi stepped up for his side and calmly slotted the ball away for his sixth goal of the season, sending keeper Rajab Hamza the wrong way.
 The first half ended with Lekhwiya taking a 2-0 lead going into the second half, giving the ten men Al Arabi a mountain to climb.  Minutes after the restart Al Arabi had a penalty shout waved away after Imoh Ezekiel was bundled down by Lekhwiya defender Ahmed Yasser.
Lekhwiya rubber stamped the result on the 50th minute when the referee pointed to the penalty spot.
A powerful run from Yusef Muftah was tackled by Arabi captain Boualem Khoukhi again and Yusef al-Arabi stepped up and slid away his seventh goal of the season.
Djamel Belmadi’s side dominated the ball for large swathes of the second half, and where relentless in attack. They finally grabbed a fourth on the hour mark. Yusef al-Arabi registered his third on the night stabbing in from close range, to give Lekhwiya a unassailable lead.
Al Arabi had a chance to reduce the deficit from the penalty spot on the 67th minute, after Boualem Khoukhi was fouled in the box by Chico Flores. Paulinho stepped up for Al Arabi, unfortunately his effort kissed the post and went wide. Omar al-Amadi grabbed a consolation for Arabi  in the 83rd minute, with a powerful shot from outside the box.
Lekhiwya had further opportunities to extend their lead, and missed a host of chances. Djamel Belmadi’s side played out the remainder of the tie to register an impressive 4-1 win taking them to the top of the QSL standings. (QSL)