Lekhwiya reach Emir Cup final for first time
DOHA: Lekhwiya on Friday marched into the final of the Emir
Cup for thefirst time in their history when they outplayed El
Jaish SC 2-1 in the second semi-final played at the Jassim
Bin Hamad Stadium.
El Jaish took the lead in the 28th minute when their star striker
Abderrazzaq Hamed-Allah scored through a penalty.
However, Lekhwiya made a perfect comeback when their South
Korean midfielder Nam Tae-Hee squared the scores at one-all in
the 45th minute before Mohammed Moussa Ali seal their victory in
the 79th minute with a perfect header.
The South Korean produced a great freekick, one that curled over
the wall and straight into the near corner of the goal. Coach Belmadi’s
reaction – running around and punching the air – said it all.
In the second half too, Lekhwiya saw more of the ball then Jaish. They
had a few sporadic attempts but none that were too threatening. Lekhwiya
brought on striker Mohamed Muntari to increase their scoring chances
but it was a short stint that ended in pain. The lanky striker pulled up
after being on the pitch for barely a few minutes. The knee injury that
seemed to have kept him out seemed to have resurfaced and Muntari
was see in tears later as he had to be replaced. Luiz Martin came on
in his place.
Lekhwiya continued to look for the goal and though many attempts
were wasted they finally got one in through Musa. The defender has
an uncanny ability to put himself on the scoresheet and it was he
who scored the winning goal, off a corner, in the 79th minute. Lekhwiya
will now hope for a similar strong performance against Sadd and look
to claim a piece of silverware this season.
Lekhwiya will meet Al Sadd who look to defend theirtitle in the final
which will be played at the same venue on May 20.