Al Arabi registered their second win of the season as they defeated Al Khor by a solitary goal at the Grand Hamad Stadium. Striker Yousef Ahmed scored the only goal of the match to secure three valuable points for Arabi.

The spotlight certainly is on Arabi this season since bringing in Gianfranco Zola as head coach and so far the Italian has managed to get the best out of his side with two wins from two games. 

During the pre-match press conferences, the Italian reiterated that resurrecting Arabi and getting them back to where they belong is his primary objective. But he also requested patience to be afforded to him because the revival won’t happen overnight.

Tonight’s performance against Khor will help Arabi fans believe in his philosophy that much more as the Dream Team looked more composed and worked as a team for large parts of the game.

There was just one goal and that came early in the match – in the 24^th minute. Midfielder Ali Jasemi sent a lob down the flank on the right for Yousef Ahmed. Al Khor defender Lee Yong couldn’t clear the ball and Yousef ran around him to slot the ball past the onrushing keeper. It wasn’t the most powerful of shots as Yousef didn’t connect properly.  The ball seemed to take an age to bobble over the line and defender Naif al‐Buriki attempted a last ditch clearance but the ball had already crossed the line.

Possession was almost even with Arabi edging it slightly and created more chances. Tonight’s Zola’s mend deserved the victory after putting a hard shirt. 

There will be tougher challenges ahead and Zola might worry with his team’s low number of goals. However at the same time his side has conceded no goals so far.

Khor, on the other hand, have now lost both of their games. They have been defeated by opponents who could be rated as stronger than them. However, Head Coach Jean Fernandez will need to get his players to do more if they are to avoid a relegation battle.