High five for Bounedjah as Sadd thrash Arabi

Baghdad Bounedjah scored five goals as Al Sadd thrashed Al Arabi 7-0 to catch up with Lekhwiya and set the stage for a thrilling end to the Qatar Stars League yesterday.
A draw against Rayyan and an upset loss to Umm Salal saw Lekhwiya’s lead cut significantly, leaving the door open for Al Sadd to climb up the standings.
And the Wolves grabbed the opportunity with both hands at the Al Sadd stadium, running rampant as hapless Al Arabi succumbed to one of their worst-ever defeats
Al Sadd opened the scoring in the fifth minute, courtesy of Morteza Mohammed. Xavi squared the ball to the Iranian international defender who scored with the ‘keeper Rajab Hamza off his line.
Bounedjah added a second goal in the 28th minute when he received a fantastic pass inside the box from Hassan Haydous. The Algerian got on the end of the pass played the ball around the keeper and walked the ball into the net to make it 2-0.
Then in the 37th minute, Bounedjah scored another goal to make it 3-0. Compatriot Jugurtha Hamroun squared the ball to the Algerian striker who tapped it home from close range to give his side a three goal advantage.
Just at the stroke of half time, Bounedjah scored his hat-trick to end the first half at 4-0. The twenty-five-year-old scored from a penalty as he used the famous Paneka technique to send the ball into the goal past goalkeeper Hamza.
 The goals kept on coming for Al Sadd in the second half, particularly for their star striker Bounedjah. He scored his best goal of the night after he hoodwinked the defence to send the ball into the near post to make it 5-0.
Substitute Khalfan Ibrahim also got his name on the board as he headed in the ball to score Al Sadd’s sixth goal. Abdel Karim Hassan crossed the ball to his teammate who instinctively reacted by heading the ball into the empty net in the eightieth minute.
Just six minutes later, Bounedjah scored his fifth goal of the evening to take his season tally to 21 goals, tying him in the top scorer position along with Yousef El Arabi of Lekhwiya. Hamza Sanhaji dived in to recover the ball from the defender and laid it into the path of Bounedjah, who lured the keeper towards him before smashing the ball into the net.
Al Arabi had a chance to score a consolation goal in the eighty-sixth minute when they won a penalty. Luiz Antonio Jimenez stepped up for the penalty and skied the shot over the bar to compound a miserable night for Al Arabi.
After the 7-0 drubbing, Jesualdo Fereira’s men are on 50 points with Lekhwiya at the top, while Al Arabi have to go back to the drawing board as they are in the eighth position with 23 points.