Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Beirut: Al Ahed and Al Zawraa settled for a share of the spoils after their AFC Cup Group B opener finished 1-1 on Monday.
The visitors took the lead just four minutes after kick-off at the Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium as Safaa Hadi's 20-yard drive beat Al Ahed keeper Mehdi Khalil and nestled into the back of the net.
Al Ahed's efforts to get back into the game looked to have been rewarded in the 16th minute, when they were awarded a penalty after Ahmed Zreik was fouled in the box by Hussein Jwayed, but Nour Mansour's spot-kick was parried away by goalkeeper Jalal Hassan.
The hosts got their equaliser midway through the second half as Yakubu headed in Hussein Dakik's cross in the 67th minute. The Ghanaian's night, however, ended on a low note after he was sent off with seven minutes on the clock for a second bookable offence.
Despite their numerical advantage, Al Zawraa were unable to get a winning goal, instead taking an important away point in their campaign opener. The Iraqi side will face Syria's Al Jaish in Doha on Matchday 2 while Al Ahed travel to Bahrain to play Manama.