Al Ahed take advantage after edging Al Nahda

MUSCAT: Oman’s Al Nahda suffered to a 1-0 defeat against Lebanon’s Al Ahed in the first leg West Zonal Final on Tuesday at Karbala International Stadium. The only goal in the match was scored by Mohammed al Halaq in the 46th minute.

The triumph meant, Al Ahed will have better advantage in the second leg match which will be held in Muscat on Tuesday. The winner of the West Zonal Final will meet the winner of the Inter-Zone finalists between Central Coast Mariners and Abdysh-Ata Kant in the AFC Cup final.

Both teams began the match looking for an early goal as Al Nahda head coach Hamed al Azani was depending on Abdulaziz Khalfan and Ahmed al Kaabi in the left and right sides to create the scoring attempts. Al Ahed’s Waleed Shoor and Mohammed al Halaq were the active players from the opponents side as they tested the Al Nahda defence.

Al Ahed were the better side in the first half as Karim Darweesh was very close to score the opening goal after 30 minutes from the first half but Al Nahda’s goalkeeper saved many scoring attempts. Karim Darweesh scored a goal prior to the completion of the first half but his goal was cancelled by the main referee due to an off side decision.

After resumption, the Lebanese side were very focused to score and moved on the right track to rekindle their memories as they were the champions in 2019. And it was a strong start as they managed to break the deadlock by scoring the opening goal in the 46th minute as Mohammed al Halaq found the target after receiving a perfect assistance from Waleed Shoor.

Al Nahda’s response was very weak as there were no actual movements and attempts to score the equaliser. The most active man in Al Nahda side, Walter Bwalya, tried from one occasion but his header was easy for Al Ahed’s goalkeeper in the 60th minute.

Another header from Ahmed al Matrooshi in the 78th minute failed to find the net after a cross from Ahmed al Kaabi. The match ended in favour of Al Ahed at 1-0. Now, Oman’s representatives will have to wait for the second leg match to bounce back and secure slot in the AFC Cup final.