Duhail outplay Al Khor, Markhiya down Gharafa

Al Duhail scripted yet another big victory, this time 4-0 against Al Khor in Week 18 of the QNB Stars League in front of home fans yesterday.
Ismail Mohamed (24th minute), Youssef el-Arabi (30th-min penalty), Youssef Msakny (34th) and Murad Naji (53rd) scored the goals as Al Duhail moved on to 48 points and a further step closer to the title. Al Khor stayed on 15 points. A penalty was awarded when Al Khor defender Ahmed Al Nehawi fouled Msakni inside the box. El Arabi took his tally to 22 goals and Msakny 19 in the top scorers’ chart.
Al Duhail showed no signs of fatigue after their victory over the UAE’s Al Wahda in the AFC Champions League in midweek and continued from where they left off. Al Duhail dominated throughout and the first half ended with The Red Knights having 75 per cent of the ball. They scored three times during that time. The first goal came through an opportunistic strike by Ismail. After El Arabi converted the penalty, Msakny found the net after he latched on to a long through ball.
Al Khor, without their key player Madson, had a good chance to reduce the margin at the stroke of half-time whistle, but substitute Yousef Ahmed skied the ball from close.
Al Duhail had 71 per cent of possession at full time. Such was their assertion on the match that Al Khor simply found themselves at the receiving end.
Murad found the back of the net with an angular long-ranger. Al Duhail almost scored their fifth only to see Abdulrahman Mohammed’s shot being saved by rival goalkeeper Gheith Jumah.
Meanwhile, Al Markhiya bounced back brilliantly from a two-goal deficit to defeat Al Gharafa 3-2 at the Al Arabi Stadium yesterday.
Al Gharafa went 2-0 up by the 23rd minute through goals from Wesley Sneijder. The Dutch star first found the target in the 16th minute after linking up with Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi.
Sneijder’s second came through a penalty that was awarded after Al Markhiya goalkeeper Mohamed Muntazar tripped Taremi while attempting to collect the ball.
Brazilian striker Eric de Oliveira’s two-goal blitz (61st and 64th) turned the tide of the match in Al Markhiya’s favour. Abdelqadir Ilyas (27th) scored their other goal. It was Al Markhiya’s only second victory this season. They now have 12 points, but are still at the bottom of the table. Al Gharafa remained sixth on 23 points.
Al Gharafa dominated the early exchanges and were rewarded by two goals. Sneijder had a chance in the sixth minute, but he skied his shot after being fed by Ahmed Alaaeldin. However, The Cheetahs faded out as the game progressed and The Oryxes grew in confidence. Al Markhiya fought as if they were battling for their life. Indeed, it was. De Oliveira’s goals came after one hour. The first was an opportunistic strike and the second came off a long free-kick that landed in the corner of the net.
Alaaeldin soon had an opportunity to level the score, but he headed against the body of Muntazar. The last minutes saw hectic action at both ends. Abdelqadir had his shot saved by Al Gharafa’s Brazilian midfielder Diego Amado, whereas Muntazar came up with yet another brilliant save to thwart Abdelaziz Hatem.