Al-Sadd defeats al-Rayyan in Qatar Stars League

Al Sadd began the defense of their QSL title with a 1-0 derby win over Al Rayyan. The league champions ground out a hard fought win over their rivals thanks to a stunning strike from left-back Nadir Belhadj. It was the perfect start for Hussein Amotta's side who were desperate for the perfect start to the new season. Despite winning the three points, Al Rayyan made Sadd sweat for their win as they showed encouraging signs for the campaign ahead. Despite their best efforts, Diego Aguirre's side simply couldn't find a cutting edge to take something from a frustrating league opener. After the victory, Sadd boss Amotta said: "I think we worked hard in the game. We made some mistakes in the first half but we had many opportunities to score. "When you play against Rayyan if you make more than one or two mistakes then you will pay the price." Ten minutes, Abdulkareem Al-Enazi crossed for Cho Yong-Hyung, but his header cannoned off the bar with Nilmar nodding the rebound over. With 18 minutes gone Al Sadd should have taken the lead. Raul released Abdulkarim Hassan with a great sweeping ball. In the opening round’s  second playoff, Al Sailiyah held Lekhowiya to 3-3 draw at Ahmed bin Ali stadium of Al Rayyan SC, as hosts, Al Khor were held to a 1-1 draw against Qatar SC in the third match. Stars League new comer, Muadir recorded a narrow 2-1 victory over Umm Slal  at Suhaim bin Hamad stadium of Qatar SC. Source: Qatar Olympic Committee