An evenly contested clash between Eastern Province rivals Al Qadsiah and Al Khaleej proved just that, only to be decided by a late, late winner at Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium in Dammam.
The two sides went into the Roshn Saudi League Matchweek 12 encounter with little to separate them; both were on a four-match winning run and occupied fifth and sixth place respectively, while each side even scored the same amount of goals going into the match, with 15.
To add an additional bit of spice to the fixture, a win for Al Khaleej would have meant equalling their rivals’ tally of 22 points and eclipsing them in the table.
Al Qadsiah thought they had taken an early lead when, just seven minutes in, young right-back Mohammed Abu Al Shamat delivered an exceptional diagonal ball for Turki Al Ammar, who was dispossessed by Marcel Tisserand although he instantly gave it away for Julian Quinones. The Mexican duly punished the Al Khaleej defence, but his joy was cut short by a raised flag against Al Ammar.
The side from Al Khobar could have been ahead early in the second half was it not for a combination of the upright and some terrific goalkeeping from Al Khaleej’s Ibrahim Sehic. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang dribbled expertly and drilled an effort that bounced off the woodwork into the path of Quinones, whose tame follow-up looked set to creep over the goal-line only for the Bosnian international keeper to recover and tip it away.
It took a while, but the stalemate was finally broken in the fifth minute of added time, when a Cameron Puertas corner was headed home by Abdulaziz Al Othman. The 20-year-old’s third goal of the season extended Al Qadsiah’s winning run to five, while ending Al Khaleej’s own streak.
Temporarily up to fourth place ahead of Al Shabab’s clash with city rivals Al Hilal on Saturday night, Al Qadsiah are now firmly in contention for continental football. Meanwhile, Al Khaleej’s seventh place is still on par with their best-ever RSL finish.
