Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Irbid: Mohammad Hamadkou scored a minute from time to secure a draw for Al Wahda against Al Wehdat on Wednesday evening and ensure matters remain tight at the top of Group of the 2015 AFC Cup.
Hamadkou’s 89th minute effort cancelled out Monther Abu Amara’s opener in the 27th minute and means both teams move on to seven points from their first four AFC Cup group matches, one point clear of Oman’s Al Nahda.
Al Wehdat, leading at the time through Abu Amara’s goal, were forced to play the final 27 minutes of the game without Jordan national team goalkeeper Amer Shafi, who was sent off for a second bookable offence.
“The match was hard and things become harder after we lost our goalkeeper Amer Shafi because of the red card,” said Al Wehdat coach Abdallah Abu Zema. “We performed well in the first half and had some scoring chances but we were not lucky.
“The last minutes of the match were hard for us as we tried our best to hold on to our lead. I want to thank the players for the effort that put in today and we will try our best to finish on top of the group by winning our last two matches.”
Abu Amara gave Al Wehdat the lead in the 27th minute when Mohammad Kataya brought down Ahmad Hisham and the 22-year-old made no mistake from the penalty spot.
Shafi’s sending off swung the balance of the game in Al Wahda’s favour and they eventually picked up the equaliser when Osama Omari’s cross from the left was headed through the legs of substitute goalkeeper Hamad Al Asmar by Hamadkou.
Al Wehdat ended the game with just nine players on the pitch when Ahmed Elias joined Shafi for an early shower after he also picked up a second booking.
“We knew that the match would be very hard for us because we know that Al Wehdat are a strong team,” said Al Wahda coach Mohamed Shabrak.
“We tried our best to play with good organisation and our plan was to play with an attacking performance in the last minutes of the match.
“We made several attacking changes and we were the better side in the last minutes. The point was good for us against such tough opponents and this means that things are still open for three teams to qualify from the group.”
Photo: WSG