Qatar Clasico: Al Sadd win thriller 4-2 as Rayyan rally

Tribune News Network Doha Al Sadd seemed to ride roughshod over Al Rayyan as they clinched a 3-0 lead before Al Rayyan rallied to add more excitement to th...

Tribune News NetworkDohaAl Sadd seemed to ride roughshod over Al Rayyan as they clinched a 3-0 lead before Al Rayyan rallied to add more excitement to the Qatar Clasico clash of QNB Stars League 2021-22 season which eventually saw the defending champions win 4-2 at the Khalifa International Stadium on Wednesday.Hassan Al Haydos (fourth minute), Baghdad Bounedjah (21st minute), Andre Ayew (24th minute) and Akram Afif (58th minute) were the goal scorers for Al Sadd in the high-profile encounter.Hashem Ali (45+2) and Abdulaziz Hatem (49th minute) pulled two back for Al Rayyan.Al Sadd raised their points tally to nine with their third straight win, while Al Rayyan remained on two points that they earned from their two draws.Al Sadd got off to a flying start when Tareq Salman – with the ball near the centerline - picked out an unmarked Al Haydous. The Al Sadd star anticipated the cross well and charged ahead with the ball. Al Rayyan keeper Fahad Younis stepped out of his position, but Al Haydous – before Al Rayyan defender Ali Karami could give chase - smartly clipped the ball above his head for his side’s first goal. It was Al Haydous’ first goal of the new season.In the 12th minute, Al Rayyan’s Hatem curled in a beautiful free-kick that was met with a snap-header with a high jump by Yohan Boli, but his deflection was parried over the crossbar with an outstretched right hand by Al Sadd keeper Meshaal Barsham.Three minutes later, Boli exhibited great calm with another aerial header, but this time the Ivory Coast international was a tad off with his deflection from close range.Bounedjah doubled Al Sadd’s lead after beating three markers. After receiving a cross from Afif at the centre line, Bounedjah raced towards the Al Rayyan box. He had three markers chasing him including Dame Traore, but the Algerian striker flicked the ball at an acute angle with the greatest of calm.Ayew joined the scorers’ list with a left-footed drive with only Al Rayyan keeper to beat.Al Rayyan pulled one back in the dying seconds of the first half when Al Sadd keeper Barsham ended up giving away a cross to Al Rayyan’s Ali, who was lurking just outside the box. Ali wasted little time in lobbing the ball into the net over the head of Barsham.Five minutes into the second half, Al Rayyan struck again when Hatem deflected a cross from Ali Karami into the top of the net from close range.Al Sadd star Afif found the net when a cross from Bounedjah got deflected off Al Rayyan’s Shojae Khalilzadeh. With the ball within striking range, an unmarked Afif unleashed a left-footed drive that crashed into the net.