Al Wakrah vs Al-Gharafa 3-2

Al Wakrah came from behind to beat Al-Gharafa 3-2, with Gelson Dala scoring twice after coming off the bench and sealing it in the third minute of stoppage time. Al-Gharafa also had a first-half penalty overturned by VAR before a later spot-kick was confirmed.

Aissa Laïdouni put Al Wakrah ahead in the 38th minute, but the lead did not last until the break. Yacine Brahimi had an early penalty for Al-Gharafa cancelled by VAR on 31 minutes, then made no mistake from the spot in the 10th minute of first-half stoppage time after Saifeldeen Fadlalla’s challenge was checked and confirmed, leaving it 1-1 at half-time.

Ferjani Sassi restored Al-Gharafa’s lead two minutes after the restart, finishing from Adam Ounas, and Al Wakrah then turned to their bench on 54 minutes, sending on Gelson Dala. He levelled in the 78th minute after Amine Zouhzouh had missed a penalty at the same minute, and Dala struck again in the third minute of stoppage time from Murad Naji’s pass. Al Wakrah also made two changes together on 71 minutes, while Al-Gharafa replaced Ferjani Sassi late on, but the home side kept the pressure on until the winning goal.

The numbers pointed the other way for much of the game. Al-Gharafa had 60% possession, 464 passes to Al Wakrah’s 309, and more shots, 26 to 10, with 8 on target to 4. They also won 9 corners to 3 and had fewer fouls, 13 to 17, while Al Wakrah’s goalkeeper made 6 saves compared with 2 for Al-Gharafa.

Bookings were shared at 2 apiece. Abdulrahman Al-Rashidi was booked on 54 minutes, Pedro Rui da Mota Vieira Martins on 72, Seydou Sano on 85, and Al Wakrah’s Gelson Dala and Omar Salah were both booked late, on 90+5 and 90+8 respectively. There were no red cards.