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Qatari side Al Gharafa put Al Nasr out of contention with 3-1 victory

Dubai-based Al Nasr received their fourth successive defeat in the AFC Champions League, being seen off by Qatari side Al Gharafa with a 3-1 victory in Doha on Wednesday night. Al Nasr are now out of contention to progress to the final 16 of the competition as they sit bottom of Group C with no points to their name. The winners raised their tally to nine points the same that of Al Ahli of Saudi Arabia who host third-placed Sepahan of Iran this evening at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium in Al Riyadh.

Al Gharafa pressed hard from the offset, trying to score an early goal but Al Nasr's Ahmad Shambieh stood firm in goal to deny their early chances. However, Al Gharafa’s continuous pressure was soon rewarded when Lawrence Quaye put them 1-0 up as early as the ninth minute, making the most of a ball switched from the right flank. He pounced to lash home an unstoppable volley that went straight into the right-hand corner. This early goal inspired the players of both squads to up their games, as Al Nasr attempted to organise their lines to get back in the game.
 
Al Gharafa’s coach was forced to make an early substitution due to an injury to Bilal Mohammed, replaced by Majid Siddeeq one minute after going a goal ahead. As time went on, Al Nasr’s players became more confident and played their way back into the contest. They were back on level terms in the 17th minute when Japanese striker Takayuki Morimoto received a perfect pass from Bruno Cesar, benefitting from a defensive mistake to drive the ball into the net over the advancing goalkeeper Jasim Burhan. Al Nasr looked the better side afterwards showing superiority over the home team but all their work could not help them to double their advantage. Al Gharafa’s performance level dropped after conceding as they depended on long balls that were easily controlled by Al Nasr’s defenders. Djibril Cisse tried to find the back of the net in the 23rd minute but his glancing header was straight into the arms of goalkeeper Ahmad Shambieh, and though both sides registered further attempts, the first half finished 1-1.


Al Nasr remained the dominant side after the break, but were unable to convert their control of possession into clear-cut chances. Hamad Al Shami of Al Gharafa was replaced by Mishal Mubarak in the 53rd minute due to injury and in the same minute Al Nasr’s player Giuseppe Mascara launched a left-footed rocket-like volley that was controlled by the goalie Burhan.  The hosts’ Brazilian striker Nene put his team ahead before the hour mark, following up from Djibril Cisse’s shot that rebounded off the 'keeper Ahmed Shambieh’s hands to make it 2-1. Nerves then entered Al Nasr's performance after conceding the second goal, giving their rivals a chance to tighten their grip on the game. Italian coach Walter Zenga brought on Jamal Ibrahim to substitute his teammate Hassan Amin in the 65th minute and four minutes later Djibril Cisse came close to net the third goal but his close-range shot was saved by Shambieh. The Qatari team dominated the match in the last 15 minutes, which saw Fahad Al Shammari score the third goal for the home side with a diving header to put the game beyond reach 11 minutes from time, giving Al Gharafa a comprehensive 3-1 win and ending Al Nasr's hopes of progression in the tournament.