Doha: Coach Xavi Hernandez has praised Al Sadd after they pulled off a hard-fought 1-0 win over Al Rayyan in their traditional Qatar Clasico clash on Wednesday.
Striker Baghdad Bounedjah scored deep into the second half to hand Al Sadd victory that put them 7 points clear on top of the table.
Xavi was impressed with his team’s resolve in the big game just four days after winning the high-intensity clash with Al Arabi in the Amir Cup final.
“It was a difficult game. We were better than Al Rayyan, especially in the second half. We wasted many opportunities and we could have scored more goals to increase the result,” said Xavi.
He added: “I am happy with the performance of all the players. It is not easy to win the Cup and then return to give a strong performance. The players who started the game performed well and everyone on the team was up to the responsibility.”
“It was a deserved win for us. We are 7 points ahead of the closest team at the top of the table and we must continue to give our best in the coming matches.”
“We are in our best moment. We are training well and showing great levels in the matches. I want to thank the Al Sadd fans for their support for the team during the recent games,” Xavi added.
Al Rayyan stood sixth with 13 points despite their third defeat.
In other games, Al Gharafa regained the second position with a 1-0 victory over Al Wakrah. The Cheetahs have 21 points following their seventh victory, while Al Wakrah remained in eighth position with 10 points despite their sixth defeat.
Al Ahli slipped to third place as they stood on 19 points after their 1-4 loss to Qatar SC, who completed five victories in a row and sixth overall. The Kings, however, slipped from fourth to fifth position as they tied with reigning champions Al Duhail on 18 points and goal difference (+8).
Al Duhail, who defeated Al Khor 6-1 for their sixth win, scored 21 goals and conceded 13 as against Qatar SC’s 17 goals for and nine against. Al Khor slipped one place to 11th with seven points after their fifth loss. Al Arabi did well in defeating Al Kharaitiyat 3-1 and The Dream Team improved their ranking from 11th to ninth with nine points following their second victory. Al Kharaitiyat remained at the bottom with six points after suffering their eight defeat.
In the other fixture, Al Sailiya and Umm Salal played out a 1-1 draw. Al Sailiya remained in seventh place with 12 points, while Umm Salal fell from ninth to 10th with nine points.
Source: thepeninsulaqatar.com