Al Duhail's Moustafa Heiba prepares to score a goal against Al Rayyan during yesterday's quarter-final.
Doha: Qatar’s Al Duhail took a step closer to their third Asian Club League Championship title when they reached the semi-finals of the prestigious event in Doha, yesterday.
The title-winners of the 2018 and 2022 editions eliminated Al Rayyan 24-23 in a thrilling showdown in front of a massive crowd at the Al Duhail Main Hall.
Al Duhail’s goalkeeper Ahmed Badawi was named the Most Valuable Player of the Match for his commendable performance guarding the net.
The hosts will now target their fourth final under the Al Duhail banner, also having done so twice as Lekhwiya and three times as El Jaish before the two clubs were merged in 2017 and rebranded as Al Duhail.
They will take on Saudi Arabia’s Khaleej Club in tomorrow’s semi-final.
Al Duhail’s Yassin Boutafaha said he is happy to see his team bounce back after early hiccups in the group stage and advance.
“Today, we played an excellent match, something to build on. We’ll work on correcting the small mistakes we made,” Boutafaha said.
Boutafaha added that the next match will be challenging, but the team will stay positive.
“The Khaleej Club is a big team. They are the current title-holders and they have their fans present here. But on the field, it’s always 50-50. However, the initial stumble in the group stage will be behind us, and God willing, we’ll reach the final,” Boutafaha added.
Earlier, yesterday, UAE’s Sharjah SC and Kuwait’s Kazma SC advanced, setting up a mouthwatering semi-final showdown.
Sharjah SC secured a strong 36-25 win over Iran’s Sanat Mes Kerman in the opening quarter-final match, while Kazma SC beat Al Kuwait SC in an all-Kuwait clash.
Kazma SC, the winners of the first two editions of the Championship, in 1998 and 1999, won the match with a scoreline of 32-25.
The third quarter-final encounter saw a dominant performance from Khaleej Club as they dismantled Bahrain’s Al Shabab Club with a resounding 35-20 victory.
The matches for 5th to 8th place will take place today, while the final and the bronze medal match are scheduled for Saturday.
