Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Riyadh: Ibrahim Ghaleb’s 88th minute penalty sealed a share of the points for Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr in a 1-1 draw with Lekhwiya in their 2016 AFC Champions League Group B meeting on Wednesday.
Alain Dioko netted seven minutes into a first half dominated by last season’s Qatar Stars League champions but Ghaleb’s late equaliser from the spot ensured Raul Caneda’s side took a deserved share of the points.
The draw means Al Nassr are level with Iran’s Zobahan on five points from three games while Lekhwiya are still waiting for their first win of the 2016 campaign and are alongside Uzbekistan’s Bunyodkor on two points.
“It was a good match from both teams but we conceded a goal in the first half as the players played without complete concentration,” said Caneda. “At half time, I asked the players to play at an easier pace and we created many scoring chances in the second period.
“I was not surprised with the strength of our opponents because they are a good side and they have several experienced players. However, when we played with our own style in the second half we managed to reduce their threat and were better than them.”
Lekhwiya started the game at a high tempo and within seven minutes Djamal Belmadi’s side were in front when Youseef Msakni’s pass released Ismail Mohamad behind the Al Nassr defence and he squared the ball for Dioko to roll his shot into the net.
Al Nassr’s Abdullah Al Enezi was the busier of the two goalkeepers in the first half and, soon after Dioko’s opener, he was forced to push Nam Tae-hee’s free kick to safety.
There was little he could do in the 28th minute, however, when Nam and Dioko combined for the Congolese forward to head goalward, only for the ball to clip the crossbar.
Lekhwiya continued to create chances, with Nam denied by Al Enezi after his shot on the turn and the Saudi goalkeeper kept out another attempt by the Korea Republic international soon after. Dioko, meanwhile, should have done better with his sliding effort that went the wrong side of the post.
Al Nassr created little in the opening 45 minutes with the only real threat on Amine Lacomte’s goal coming from midfielder Adrian Mierzejewski’s shot just after the half-hour mark. But that all changed in the second period.
Lacomte dived to his right to push away Modibo Maiga’s header four minutes after the restart and in the 66th minute he palmed Omar Hawsawi’s header over the bar.
Al Nassr continued to push for the equaliser with Lacomte again called into action in the 78th minute as Lekhwiya’s rearguard action grew ever more desperate.
The Saudis finally claimed the equaliser their second-half display deserved when Ahmed Yasser was adjudged to have blocked Hawsawi’s goal-bound shot with his arm and Ghaleb struck decisively from the spot to keep Lekhwiya winless as the group stage reached the halfway stage.
“We came here to put in a good performance and we were expecting to get the three points,” said Belmadi. “I’m proud of the performance of the players as we were close to scoring another goal, but we failed to convert the chances that we had.
“Al Nassr put a lot of pressure on us in the second half and we nearly conceded several goals. The players put in a good performance and despite being in a difficult situation, we still have a chance to go through.”
Photo: Lagardère Sports