Doha: Al Arabi were held to a 1-1 draw by Al Qadsia of Kuwait in the opening match of their Gulf Club Champions League (Group B) campaign on Wednesday at the Al Thumama Stadium.
Marco Verrati got Al Arabi the equaliser in the 71st minute after Igor Rossi had put the Kuwaiti side ahead in the 56th minute.
The Dream Team began their campaign in the regional tournament in an attacking mode, with most of the pressing coming from them in the early minutes of the match.
But the tides appeared to be turning gradually in Al Qadsia’s favour as the match wore on, with their central midfielder Daniel Ajibola, a Nigerian international in particular, proving to be dangerous with his often effortless incursion into Al Arabi’s box, which caused some headaches for the Qatari side’s defence.
Rodri Sánchez missed a golden chance of putting Al Arabi in front in the 25th minutes after his left-footed effort, following his brilliant move inside Al Qadsia’s final third, went a bit wide off the mark.
Al Arabi appeared to regain the upper hand from thereon as they launched waves of relentless attacks on the Kuwaiti side’s defence but for all their efforts, the match was stalemated going into the break.
The hosts began the second half from where they stopped, with Sánchez again missing a sitter in the 51st minute after being perfectly set up by Ahmed Alaaeldin to the disappointment of the bench and stands.
Five minutes later, Al Qadsia got the opening goal through Rossi to the consternation of the vociferous Al Arabi supporters.
A stunned Al Arabi went to work immediately in search of an equaliser and their efforts were rewarded in the 71st minute when Verrati fired home a 25-yard thunderbolt of a shot following a brilliant pass by Alaaeldin. The equaliser was, however, contended by the Kuwaitis, as they claimed the ball was out of touch before it was passed to Alaaeldin. But after a lengthy VAR check, the goal was allowed to stand.
Despite Al Arabi’s attempt at getting the win, especially in added time, Al Qadsia’s defence ensured that the spoils were evenly shared, with the game ending in a 1-1 draw.
