Hidd posted a hard-earned 2-1 victory over Busaiteen last night in their round 20 match of the 2023-24 Nasser bin Hamad Bahrain Premier League.
Goals in the first half from Farhan Salama and Nawaf Abdulla earned them a crucial three points as they fight to keep their place in the kingdom’s top flight.
The result moved them from second-to-last place on the table to eighth with only two matches to go in the season. Hidd are looking to avoid automatically dropping down to the second division or having to play in a relegation play-off. They will need to finish outside of the last four, with the 11th and 12th-placed squads getting directly demoted and the ninth and 10th-placed teams needing to face division two sides Al Malkiya and Al Ettihad for two berths in next year’s premier league.
Busaiteen are in danger of being one of those relegated teams as they stayed at the very bottom of the standings with yesterday’s defeat.
In other fixtures last night, Sitra and Manama solidified their mid-table spots with victories. Sitra held on for a 2-1 triumph against Al Hala while Manama routed Al Najma 4-1, with three of their goals coming after the break. Sitra’s victory gave them some breathing room in the battle to fend off relegation, but they are just two points removed from the bottom four.
In Hidd’s win at Shaikh Ali bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Stadium in Arad, Salama opened their account with a fifth minute penalty after Busaiteen skipper Salman Ali Mahdi handled the ball in the area. Salama calmly converted his effort, sending the ball straight into the net. Hidd then added their second in the 25th minute when Abdulla fired in a brilliant off-balanced shot from the inside edge of the box.
Busaiteen got a goal back in the 77th minute through substitute Saleh Al Zubaidi, who scored with a header from six yards off a headed pass by Abdelmalek Bendalal.
Hidd came away with only their fifth win in 20 games and improved to 22 points, tied on the standings with East Riffa. Busaiteen registered their 10th loss and are on 18 markers in last place.
Should any teams be level on points by the end of the season, the results of their head-to-head matches and then goal difference will decide the tie-break, according to the Bahrain Football Association.
In Sitra’s win over Hala at Khalifa Sports City Stadium in Isa Town, Abdulwasi Al Matari gave them the lead after just four minutes with a stunning left-footed effort from a yard outside the penalty area. His shot hit the bottom of the crossbar and bounced into the net. Abdulkarim Diarra then made it 2-0 in the 51st with one touch off a superb long pass from beyond the half-field line by Ebrahim Eid.
Hala posted their lone consolation in the seventh minute of second-half stoppage time. Substitute Abdulfattah Bashir scored from close range, assisted by Joseph Ansah.
Sitra won for the fifth time in the league and rose to 24 points, while handing Hala a league-worst 12th loss as they fell to second-to-last on 20 points.
In yesterday’s third match, Manama hit four past Najma at the National Stadium in Riffa.
Suelynton Thiago was first to find the net for the victors in the 18th minute but Najma equalised 10 minutes later with a rocket from the league’s leading goal scorer Edimar Ribeiro.
Manama then took over after the interval and went ahead in the 53rd minute with a penalty by Omar Duaij after an Alain Eyenga hand ball in the area. Just two minutes later, Facundo Agustin Tobares tapped in off a sensational cross from the left wing by Ebrahim Al Khattal, and then Ahmed Moussa hit the nail in the coffin, scoring off a rebound in the 78th minute after Najma goalkeeper Ahmed Abdulrasool stopped a shot from Manama’s Abdulwahab Ali.
Manama earned their eighth victory in 20 matches to go to 29 points in fifth place, while Najma suffered their eighth defeat and stayed on 26 in sixth.
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