Al Rayyan: Al Rayyan and Al Gharafa played out a 2-2 draw in the opening Week 14 match of the 2024-2025 season Ooredoo Stars League at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium of Al Rayyan club on Wednesday. The Lions twice came from behind, with Adam Bareiro (14th minute) and Roger Guedes (90+2 minute penalty) restoring parity after Joselu (fifth minute) and Amro Surag (55th minute) had given The Cheetahs the lead. With the result, Al Rayyan's points tally now stands at 18, while Al Gharafa are on 28 points.
According to Qatar News Agency, the highly-enthralling encounter witnessed the first goal within the first five minutes of play when Joselu, with his back to the goal, unexpectedly fended off Al Rayyan's Andre Amaro before unleashing a low but powerful left-footed shot that a stunned goalkeeper Samy Beldi could not do anything about to give Al Gharafa the lead. The goal was assisted by Ahmed Al Janahi.
Encouraged by the early lead, Al Gharafa seemed to be in control, keeping Al Rayyan's defensive lineup on its toes with more daring raids in their attempts at extending their lead. However, Al Rayyan responded with counterattacks. The game became even in the 14th minute when Bareiro finished off a move started by Mahmoud Trezeguet, who laid a defence-splitting pass to Murad Naji, who wasted no time in squaring the ball to the Paraguayan to fire home a left-footed shot from close range.
With parity restored, both sides appeared to be playing with less pressure, weighing their chances against each other and ensuring to prevent any unnecessary risk. Trezeguet almost gave Al Rayyan the lead in the 31st minute, but his shot from outside the box slightly missed to the right.
The second half saw Al Gharafa retake the lead with Amro Surag blasting home a right-footed shot from the right side of the box ten minutes into the second half. The goal was assisted by Abdalla Yousif. Trezeguet, who was a major threat throughout the match, almost restored parity in the 60th minute, but his shot went a bit too high.
Al Gharafa maintained their lead in regulation time until Assim Madibo conceded a penalty two minutes into added time after fouling Trezeguet. The subsequent spot kick was successfully converted by Guedes to ensure the spoils were evenly shared.