Dubai: Romain Saiss scored the equaliser for Al Sadd as The Wolves held UAE’s Al Wasl to a 1-1 draw in Round 4 of the 2024-2025 season AFC Champions League Elite (West Zone) at the Zabeel Stadium in Dubai on Monday.
Saiss 61st minute goal cancelled out Alexis Perez’s 29th minute opener for the home side with Al Wasl reduced to ten men in seven minutes remaining of regulation time after Soufiane Bouftini got the marching orders for violent conduct following a hard tackle on Al Sadd’s Mostafa Meshaal.
The result means Al Sadd remain unbeaten as the league phase reaches the halfway point with Felix Sanchez’s side moving onto eight points from four games while Al Wasl are a further point behind.
Yusuf Abdurisag missed an early opportunity to give Al Sadd the lead when he received a pass from Akram Afif. The newly awarded AFC Player of the Year slid the ball across the goal in the eighth minute, but the striker misfired, sending his close-range attempt far off target.
Shortly thereafter, Afif’s shot during an Al Sadd counterattack was deflected into the side-netting by Bouftini, as the visitors applied significant early pressure without securing a concrete advantage.
In the 19th minute, Khaled Al Senani successfully parried Abdurisag’s long-range attempt to safety. Despite the visitors’ control of the game, it was Al Wasl who came closest to scoring just two minutes later.
Srdan Mijailovic delivered a well-placed cross from the left, which Haris Seferovic skillfully controlled with his first touch. The Swiss forward then rolled the ball across the goal to the unmarked Jonatas Santos, who inexplicably shot high over the bar.
However, Al Wasl did not have to wait long to take the lead.
Al Sadd midfielder Mohamed Camara relinquished possession in his own half to Perez, who advanced and unleashed a right-footed shot from 30 yards. The attempt took a significant deflection off Boualem Khoukhi, deceiving the goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham.
Camara’s subsequent shot sailed over the crossbar, and Saiss’s free kick was poorly directed as Al Sadd aimed for an equalizer before halftime. The equalizing goal finally arrived 16 minutes into the second half.
The Al Wasl defense only partially cleared an in-swinging free kick from Afif on the left. Khoukhi then delivered a precise cross from the right back into the penalty area, finding Saiss’s head within the six-yard box.
With just over 10 minutes left, Cristo Perez’s shot nearly surprised Al Senani as Al Sadd pushed for a winning goal. The Al Wasl goalkeeper managed to readjust and punch the ball clear, shortly before Bouftini received a red card.
Referee Muhammad Nazmi Nasaruddin assessed the Moroccan’s aggressive challenge on Mostafa Meshaal and determined it to be sufficiently perilous to warrant a red card.
Nevertheless, Al Wasl managed to hold their ground, securing a point despite being reduced to ten players.
