Doha: Al Gharafa held Al Duhail to a 1-1 draw in a strong Week 8 contest of the 2024-2025 season Ooredoo Stars League at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium of Al Duhail club on Sunday.
Mohammed Muntari came off the bench to rescue a point for Al Gharafa after scoring in the 87th minute. Al Duhail's Michael Olunga had scored for Al Duhail in the 55th minute.
With the points shared, table-topping Al Duhail now have 19 points, while fourth-placed Al Gharafa are on 12.
The match lived up to its billing as one of the strongest contests of the week, with both sides going for each other jugular with an impressive display of skills and determination to the admiration of the fans of both sides, who undoubtedly enjoyed every bit of the time spent at the stadium.
The first major attempt of the night fell to Al Gharafa, with Yacine Brahimi missing a right-footed shot from the left side of the six yard that could have given The Cheetahs the opener in the seventh minute following a splendid assist from Joselu.
By the 23rd minute, it was the turn of The Red Knights to test their attacking prowess, but Olunga's left-footed shot from the left side of the box was just inches wide from finding the back of the net.
Almoez Ali also missed another wonderful chance for Al Duhail in the 43rd minute after being set up by Luis Alberto, but his right-footed shot went disappointingly wide.
The Qatar national team player's attempt happened to be the last major event of the half as both sides went into the dugout without any difference between them.
The second half witnessed a rejuvenated Al Duhail, who were out to ensure their lead at the top was not in any way threatened as they took the battle to Al Gharafa's gate with their constant bombardment and pressure.
Al Gharafa's defence eventually caved in 10 minutes into the half, with Olunga finishing off an initial one-two move from just outside of the 25-yard box that located Almoez Ali, who squared a beautiful pass to the Kenyan international to simply slide into an empty net for Al Duhail's goal.
Stunned by the goal, Al Gharafa's attempt at getting an equaliser began in earnest and they were quite unlucky on a few occasions, with poor finishing being their bane.
Sensing a need to strengthen their attack, Portuguese coach Pedro Martins threw in Muntari in the 81st minute and his gamble paid off as the substitute rescued a point for his team within six minutes of joining the fray with a sensational right-footed shot from the centre of the box that located the bottom left corner of Al Duhail's goal to ensure the match ended in a stalemate between the two sides.
Source: Qatar News Agency