Al Arabi's Icelandic midfielder Aron Gunnarsson in action during yesterday's semi-final.
Doha: Eight-time champions Al Arabi displayed a commanding performance to march into their first Amir Cup final since 1994, outclassing Al Markhiya 2-0 in the first semi-final of the prestigious tournament at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, yesterday.
It is the 12th time that ‘The Dream Team’ has reached the Amir Cup final, while the defeat ended second division side Al Markhiya’s dream run in the event after their memorable wins over Al Gharafa and Al Rayyan.
Midfielder Aron Gunnarsson (17th minute) and striker Abdulaziz Al Ansari (59’) scored goals to put Al Arabi in the final, where they will face winners of today’s highly-anticipated semi-final between defending champions Al Duhail and giants Al Sadd.
Al Arabi’s last title-win came in 2011 when they won the Sheikh Jassim Cup, with yesterday’s win giving them a golden opportunity to end drought of trophies.
"We are proud to make a return to the Amir Cup final. It is a step in the right direction for us. We are doing a good job but we still need to work hard as it is still a long way to go for us," Al Arabi coach Heimir Hallgrimsson said after yesterday's win.
"We deserved the victory and I want to congratulate Al Markhiya for their strong performance and great spirit," Hallgrimsson said.
Backed by a good number of fans, Al Arabi dominated the entire match, giving no chance of an upset to Al Markhiya, coached by Omar Naji. Qatar coach Felix Sanchez was also in the stands to watch the semi-final.
Al Arabi started making attacks right from the beginning and enjoyed the lion’s share of ball possession in the match. Tunisian player Hamdi Amdulmaged gave Al Markhiya first scare with a hit from near the penalty spot, forcing their goalkeeper Basel Samih to make a diving save.
After series of more attempts, Icelander Gunnarsson, finally, opened account following a free kick, which was taken by Iranian Mahdi Torabi. Gunnarsson got Torabi’s ball while in perfect position at the centre and he made no mistake in netting the ball on a clinical strike, leaving no chance for a diving Samih. Soon after conceding a goal, Al Markhiya made their first attempt with Qatar U-23 player Mohammed Al Qahtani leading the attack from the right but Jameel Al Yahmadi missed the goal-scoring opportunity as he failed to connect Al Qahtani’s fine cross.
Mehrad Keshrazi, who was influential in most of Al Arabi’s attacks yesterday, produced brilliant show inside the circle dodging three defenders but was off the mark in his try to score second goal for his team. Despite their repeated attacks, ‘The Dream Team’ went into the half-time with a one-goal advantage.
Meanwhile, Al Markhiya’s Talal Ali and Al Arabi’s Abdulaziz Al Ansari had to be treated after they collided while fighting for ball possession soon after the second half started.
Talal was then cautioned for a rash challenge against Keshrazi, nevertheless, Al Markhiya looked an improved side in the second half.
However, it was Al Arabi, who doubled their with a fiery hit from Al Ansari, who scored from just inside the circle on right corner after being set up by Abdulmaged. Hallgrimsson made two changes sending seasoned Sebastian Soria and Yasir Abubakar in place of Keshrazi and Fahad Obaid with more than 20 minutes to go.
In 73rd minute, Ibrahim Nasser got a chance to triple the lead for Al Arabi after an error from defender but he failed to beat Samih, who was only left to defend the goal.
Al Markhiya didn’t pose threat to Al Arabi’s lead which they carried till the final whistle to walk into the final of Qatar’s most popular football tournament after a long hiatus.
