Al Ahli fight back to beat Al Gharafa after Sano red card

Al Ahli came from behind in the second half to beat Al Gharafa 2-1 and claim their second successive win in the AFC Champions League Elite on Monday.

The Saudi Arabian side took an early lead in the third league-phase round when Edward Spertsyan released Ivan Toney through on goal in the fourth minute. The England forward showed composure to lift the ball over goalkeeper Ahmed Kone and into the net.

Al Gharafa attempted to respond, with Adam Ounas shooting narrowly wide from a difficult angle in the 17th minute. Play was then halted for two minutes after Al Ahli player Mohamed Suleiman suffered an injury, before the match resumed in the 20th minute.

Hasan Alaaeldin tried his luck from more than 35 yards in the 25th minute, but his effort went wide of the right post. Toney was booked four minutes later, while the game was stopped again for a water break in the 31st minute.

Al Gharafa continued to threaten before half-time, but Al Ahli goalkeeper Abdulrahman Al-Sanbi saved Florinel Coman’s shot from outside the area in the 38th minute.

Hasan Alaaeldin was unable to continue after sustaining an injury and was replaced by Yacine Brahimi in the 43rd minute.

Al Ahli miss chances before equaliser

Al Ahli came close to extending their advantage in stoppage time at the end of the first half. Spertsyan shot over in the second minute of added time, while Al Gharafa’s defence blocked another attempt by Toney three minutes later.

Trincao then struck the right post with a left-footed shot from inside the area after receiving the ball from Toney. Ziyad Al-Jahni also sent an effort just wide in the sixth added minute, leaving Al Ahli 1-0 ahead at the interval.

Al Gharafa made a change at half-time, bringing on Ayoub Al-Aouy for Ryan Ahmed Al-Ali, and began the second half on the front foot.

Coman’s effort was blocked in the 47th minute, before Ferjani Sassi headed wide from a corner. Brahimi shot narrowly off target two minutes later, and Ounas missed another opportunity in the 52nd minute when he sent Coman’s pass wide of the left post.

The pressure finally paid off in the 53rd minute. Coman collected a pass from Saifeddine Fadhlallah and fired past Al-Sanbi to level the score.

Sano dismissed before late winner

Al Gharafa’s task became more difficult in the 77th minute when Sano was shown a second yellow card for a foul and sent off. Play had stopped a minute earlier because of an injury to the defender.

Damien Traore replaced Ounas in the 79th minute. In the same minute, Firas Al-Buraikan headed wide following a cross from Goncalves after a set-piece. Another water break followed in the 80th minute, with play restarting shortly afterwards.

Al Ahli increased the pressure late on and restored their lead when Matheus Goncalves struck from outside the area, sending the ball into the net to secure victory.

The result moved Al Ahli temporarily up to second place on seven points. Al Gharafa suffered their third defeat and remain 18th without a point.