Head coach Sabri Lamouchi was disappointed with Al Duhail SC’s late 1-1 draw with Al Ahli Saudi FC in their 2021 AFC Champions League Group C tie on Sunday. Michael Olunga gave the Qatar side the lead before the break but Al Ahli striker Omar al-Soma scored a stoppage time equaliser to salvage his side a point.
The result meant Al Duhail – who had opened their campaign with a 2-0 win over Al Shorta of Iraq – trail group leaders Esteghlal FC of Iran by two points heading into their clash tomorrow. Frenchman Lamouchi said his side missed out on a deserved win due to bad luck as they had been the better side. “I’m truly disappointed for what happened at the end,” said Lamouchi. “We unfortunately lost two points although we created more than 29 shots on target and we should assess what happened.”
“It is true that we created many chances but in football if you don’t take advantage of your chances and score, then you must concede. We changed some positions on the pitch but we failed to win the match at the end. Omar was Al Ahli’s best player but they didn’t create many scoring chances,” lamented Lamouchi.
Al Ahli Saudi head coach Laurentiu Reghecampf paid tribute to the fighting spirit of his players but said they have to work on limiting chances for opposing teams. “I want to congratulate the players who showed great determination, especially in defence,” he said. “I’m happy with this result because we faced very difficult circumstances.”
“I was sad to see that we were under pressure but the team worked hard as a group to get a positive result. “I will work very hard with the players in order to get positive results. We performed well in the first match but lost. Tonight, however, we managed to get a point.”
Having suffered a 5-2 defeat to Esteghlal in their opener, Al Ahli Saudi will aim for their first win of the campaign against Al Shorta Wednesday.