Al Khaldiya sealed an exciting 3-2 victory over Riffa in a 19th round match to move to the top of the table in the Nasser Bin Hamad Premier League last night.
Al Khaldiya, on 35 points, share the top spot with Manama while Riffa, on 30, remain in the fifth place.
Al Khaldiya made their intentions clear when Dominique found the back of the net with a header in the fifth minute of the match, played at the Khalifa Sports City Stadium. They maintained the 1-0 lead until half-time.
Riffa scored the equaliser in the 58th minute when Amin Al Shanaina drilled a shot into the net from a distance. Al Khaldiya’s attempts to find the lead were finally rewarded through a header in the 68th minute by Samy Frioui after receiving a cross from a corner by Mahdi Humaidan. However, Riffa’s Ali Hassan Saeed managed to scored the equaliser, in the 75th minute. Al Khaldiya survived some tense moments before Mahdi Humaidan scored the winner in the 82nd minute.
Meanwhile, Sitra defeated Al Hala 3-2 at Muharraq Stadium to keep their title hopes alive.
Sitra raised their tally to 34 points, one point behind table toppers Manama and Al Khaldiya. Al Hala, on 21 points, occupy the ninth position.
A header by Badr Bashir put Sitra ahead in the 20th minute and they extended the lead 15 minutes later through Othman Al Hajj. Five minutes later, Al Hala’s Abdulaziz Al Mansouri converted a penalty to reduce the margin as Sitra led 2-1 at half-time.
Al Hala managed to level scores when Hussein Haji found the back of the net in the 73rd minute. However, Al Hala’s hopes were dashed five minutes later when Sedina scored the winner for Sitra.
The 19th round matches kicked off last Friday, when Muharraq held East Riffa to a 2-2 draw after a goal in additional time and the match between Al Ahli and Bahrain Club ended 1-1. The following day, Manama were held to a goalless draw by Al Shabab while Al Hidd edged Budaiya 1-0.
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