Qatar SC Climb to Second After Narrow Win Al Rayyan Dominate Al Ahli in Convincing Victory

Qatar SC Edge Al Shahania to Move Second in Standings; Al Rayyan Roar Past Al Ahli In an action-packed fifth round of the Doha Bank Stars League, Qatar SC edged past Al Shahania with a narrow but vital 1-0 victory at the Khalifa International Stadium on Sunday to climb to second position in the league standings. With 13 points under their belt, they trail only Al Shamal on goal difference. Pedro’s Precision Propels Qatar SC The only goal of the match came in the 54th minute, courtesy of Brazilian forward Joao Pedro Pereira dos Santos, who latched onto an assist from Eisa Palangi. Dodging defenders with finesse, Pedro struck from inside the box into the far right corner to give his team the decisive lead. Al Shahania, who remained largely defensive in the opening half, upped the ante after going behind. Their best chance came through Daouda Soliman, who tried to lift the ball past an advancing Ali Nader Mahmoud but missed the target. With their third loss, Al Shahania stay stuck at 4 points, while Qatar SC maintain their unbeaten streak with four wins and a draw. The Lions Roar: Al Rayyan Outclass Al Ahli Al Rayyan climbed up to third place with an emphatic 3-0 win over Al Ahli at the Al Thumama Stadium, pushing past Al Gharafa on goal difference after earning their third win of the season. The scoring began in the 29th minute with Rodrigo Machado finishing a tight angle chance from a Wesley Ribeiro pass. The goal was briefly contested due to a potential offside involving Aleksandar Mitrovic, but after a lengthy VAR review, the decision stood, much to the chagrin of Al Ahli’s bench and supporters. Mitrovic then doubled the lead just before the interval, heading in a rebound after Rodrigo’s shot came off the crossbar. Despite some spirited efforts by Al Ahli to recover in the second half, they failed to convert, and in the 86th minute, Róger Guedes sealed the victory for Al Rayyan with a low, powerful finish assisted by Mohamed Surag. Al Ahli’s dismal run continues with only one win so far in what is shaping up to be one of the team’s worst league starts in recent memory. Umm Salal Return to Winning Ways Umm Salal secured an important 2-1 win over Al Sailiya at the Al Bayt Stadium, pushing themselves to sixth place in the standings with 8 points. Al Sailiya remain rooted to the bottom without a single point. The match tilted in Umm Salal’s favour in the 33rd minute after Omar Yahya brought down Abdulrahman Al Rashidi inside the box. The foul led to a VAR review which confirmed the penalty. Oussama Tannane then coolly slotted in from the spot to break the deadlock. In the second half, Umm Salal continued dominating possession, and in the 80th minute, a combination between Cristo Gonzalez and Rami Suhail resulted in the latter tapping the ball into an almost empty net to make it 2-0. Khalid Ali netted a consolation goal for Al Sailiya in stoppage time, but it was not enough to prevent another loss for the struggling outfit. As the league takes shape, Qatar SC and Al Rayyan look like early title contenders, while others like Al Ahli and Al Sailiya will need to regroup swiftly to avoid falling adrift in the standings. Team V.DIR-EM-UAE