FOOTBALL – EIGHT-TIME champions Al Ahli defeated Manama 3-1 in the first semi-final of the King Cup at the Khalifa Sport City last night to reach their second successive final.
The win was set up by a dominant showing in the first half which ended with Al Ahli leading 2-0.
Midfielder Abbas Al Asfoor put Al Ahli 1-0 up in the 32nd minute when he pounced on a rebound in the Manama box to slam the ball into the right corner of the net with goalkeeper Faiyz Al Rusheidi, caught wrong-footed, only able to look on helplessly.
Four minutes later, Al Ahli had their second goal thanks to some inept passing by Manama and a fantastic strike by midfielder Hasan Madan.
Brazilian forward Wellington Moreira was gifted the ball after a Manama pass went awry near the half line and passed it to Madan running in from the left about ten yards out from the box.
An unmarked Madan took a couple of seconds to steady himself before launching a fierce right-footed kick that sent the ball curling over Al Rusheidi into the back of the net, much to the delight of a large Al Ahli contingent in the stands.
Manama had a golden opportunity to get up on the board in the 44th minute when they were awarded a free kick right at the top of the Al Ahli box. But Argentinian forward Facundo Tobares’ free kick hit Al Asfoor, standing just behind the wall, squarely in the head and bounced away to be cleared by a defender.
Al Ahli looked to dominate further in the second half but they were undone by a bit of brilliance by Manama’s Brazilian left-winger Thiaguinho in the 69th minute.
Compatriot Elvinho fed him the ball running down the left and Thiaguinho entered the Al Ahli box, lined his shot up and sent the ball streaking past three defenders and a startled goalkeeper Ebrahim Lutfalla to put Manama on the board.
Al Ahli now led 2-1 and Manama almost drew level a minute later, again through Thiaguinho but the winger’s powerful right-footed strike, again from the left, was saved by a diving Lutfalla.
As the game ticked past the regulation 90 minutes, Al Ahli still led 2-1 but, with six minutes of stoppage time (that extended to 10 minutes because of more injuries), Manama were still holding out hope for an equaliser.
Instead, it was Al Ahli who scored in the 100th minute of the contest, again because of poor defending by Manama’s Ali Jowhar who was unable to control the ball after receiving it in his box.
That allowed Al Ahli’s Sayed Mahdi Sharaf to snatch the ball away and kick it smoothly over Al Rusheidi into the net just before the final whistle was blown.
Al Ahli, who were defeated on penalties by Al Hala in last year’s final, will now have to wait for tonight’s semi-final between Muharraq and Khaldiya to find out who they will face in the title clash.
The Muharraq-Khaldiya game starts at 6.30pm at the same venue.
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