Ararat-Armenia moved clear with a comfortable 3:1 victory over Shyrak in the Premier League's eighth round on Saturday. The result lifts the visitors to third in the table while Shyrak remain in seventh, seven points behind their hosts. It was a match decided in the opening half, though the hosts found a way through late on.
And here's the thing about the first twenty minutes — Shyrak's own defence did the visiting attack all the work. S. Tsarukyan turned the ball into his net at the 18th minute, giving Ararat-Armenia an unearned lead. Junior Julio doubled it five minutes later with a clinical finish, and Franca Carlos added a third before the break. By then, the visitors had opened talks about a comfortable afternoon.
Shyrak did not go away quietly. They had corners, they had pressure, and R. Mkrtchyan pulled one back in the 74th minute to give the home crowd something to shout about. The stadium fell silent when the goal went in, then roared. It was too little, too late, but it kept them in it until the final whistle.
The numbers tell the story of control. Ararat-Armenia dominated possession at 62 per cent and launched 96 attacks compared to Shyrak's 69. Both sides registered five shots on target, but the visitors' higher volume of attacks told you where the danger lay. Shyrak won ten corners to three, attempting to force their way back into the game.
Five yellow cards were shown across the match, with Shyrak's H. Mnatsakanyan, E. Grigoryan and V. Sargsyan joining A. Serobyan of the visitors and Tsarukyan in the referee's notebook. The game became scrappy after the own goal, and the referee had to keep things in order.
We had called for an away win before kick-off, and the confidence rating of 54 per cent held up. Ararat-Armenia are fifth in the table before this match, and three wins from their last five league games suggest momentum. Shyrak's recent form — a loss to Pyunik and a win over Sardarapat — showed inconsistency that this result exposed.
The gap between the sides widens to nine points. Shyrak have three wins and three defeats from seven games, while Ararat-Armenia's five victories and single loss keep them firmly in the upper reaches. The hosts will need to find another gear if they want to close the distance.
