Al Sadd Reaches Semi Final of HH the Amir Cup

Doha, March 14 (QNA) - Al Sadd qualified for the semifinals of the Amir Cup, after defeating Al Wakrah in a penalty shootout in their quarterfinal clash which was held at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium on Friday evening. The Wolves prevailed 4-1 in the shootout, after a 2-2 draw in normal time. Mexican attacker Marco Fabian put Al Sadd in the lead in the 43rd minute, after which Hashem Ali scored the second goal in the 55th minute. Al Wakrah then reduced the deficit through substitute Khaled Muneers 66th minute strike, before Ismail Mahmoud managed to score the equalizer in the 83rd minute. Akram Afif, Nam Tae-hee, Boualem Khoukhi and Marco Fabian all converted their spot kicks in the ensuing shootout, while Lucas Mendes and Ali Malallah missed their kicks for Al Wakrah. With this victory, Al Sadd go through to the last four, where they await the winner of the last quarterfinal clash between Al-Duhail and Al-Sailiya, which will be held on Saturday. Al Sadd began the match on the front foot and threatened the Al Wakrah goal early on, with youngsters Mohammed Waad and Hashim Ali both having a go. Khoukhi Boualem then had a powerful shot at goal in the 20th minute but Al Wakrah keeper Saoud Al Khater kept it out with some difficulty, for a corner. (In the 27th minute, Al Sadd thought they had gone ahead but their happiness was short-lived. Akram Afif won a penalty and then took the resultant kick, only to see his effort crash off the post. Hashim Ali finished off the rebound, but the referee disallowed the goal, having consulted VAR and adjudged the Al Sadd players to have encroached into the box. Eventually, Al Sadd went in front and it was Marco Fabian who got the goal. Afif got into the box and had a go but his strike rebounded off the post, landing in front of Fabian, who made no mistake as he slammed the ball in to give the Wolves a 1-0 lead. After the halftime break, Al Sadd went further ahead. In the 55th minute, Abdelkarim Hassans cross from the left was brought down in the box by Waad, and the move was completed by Hashim, whose unstoppable shot flew past Al Khater to double Al Sadds advantage. Al Wakrah then attempted a fightback and substitute Khaled Muneer succeeded in reducing the deficit in the 66th minute, capitalizing on a mistake by Hamed Ismail before getting past Meshaal Barsham and scoring. After that goal, Al Wakrah kept pressing and their efforts paid off in the 83rd minute, as Ismail Mahmoud finished off a cross from Meshaal Abdullah on the left to level the scores. That was how the game would finish in normal time, but Al Sadd prevailed in the end, keeping their calm to win on penalties and advance to the semifinals. (QNA)