Al Sadd's Akram Afif in action against three Al Gharafa players during their Round 22 match yesterday.
Al Sadd ended their 2019-20 QNB Stars League (QSL) campaign with a 1-1 draw against Al Gharafa while Al Khor and Al Shahania shared points after a two-all draw which confirmed the latter's relegation to the second division, yesterday. The defending champions, Al Sadd's position in the QSL standings was already confirmed even before yesterday's Round 22 match which was played at Al Janoub Stadium as Xavi Hernandez-coached side finished third ahead of Al Gharafa who rounded up the top four. In yesterday's match, Al Gharafa took the lead through Ahmed Alaa’s 65th-minute goal, before Akram Afif equalised from the penalty spot in the 91st minute, having missed another penalty moments earlier.
The game saw Al Gharafa defender Almahdi Ali get sent off in the 77th minute for a dangerous challenge, while their coach Slavisa Jokanovic was also shown the red card for arguing with the officials in stoppage time. The match got off to an intense start, with both sides looking for an early breakthrough. Al Gharafa looked to capitalise on an error from Meshaal Barsham in the fifth minute, but Sofiane Hanni’s shot flew over the crossbar. A few minutes later, Baghdad Bounedjah went clear on goal at the other end, but the referee blew his whistle for offside. Al Gharafa's goal came after a scramble in the box. The Al Sadd defence failed to clear the ball and Ahmed Alaa was able to finish past Meshaal Barsham to give his side a 1-0 lead. Finally, Al Sadd won a penalty when Afif was fouled in the box in the 86th minute. However, the forward saw his effort rebound off the bar and go out. A second chance arrived a few minutes later when Hanni was adjudged to have handled the ball in the box.
This time, Afif made no mistake and scored his 15th goal of the season to go top of the scorers chart. The result meant Al Sadd ended the season with 45 points, nine ahead of Al Gharafa. Later, at the same venue, Al Khor sealed their 11th place finish after sharing points with Al Shahania. Al Khor's points tally stood at 17 while Al Shahaniya, placed at the bottom of the standings, completed the season with 16 points. Al Khor's goals were scored by Thiago Bezerra and Luca Burges, while Ramin Semeskandi scored both of Al Shahania's goals. The result means Al Khor will now play the decisive match against the second-division championship runners-up for a place in next season's QSL. In the third match of the day, Al Sailiya and Umm Salal were locked in a goalless draw at the Al Sadd Stadium as they finished their campaigns with 29 and 18 points respectively.
