Al-Shamal Fight Back to Beat Al-Shakhaniya in Star League Thriller
Al-Shamal took on Al-Shakhaniya in the Star League's regular season third round on Thursday, and the hosts found a way back into it after trailing 2-1. The final score was 4-2 to Al-Shamal, with Baghdad Bounedjah slotting home in the dying moments.Abdelkarim Hassan opened the scoring in the 25th minute for the hosts, but Al-Shakhaniya responded before the break. Francesco Antonucci converted a penalty in the 45th minute plus four, then Abdoulaye Traore gave the visitors the lead five minutes after the restart. The away side thought they had added a second in the 54th minute, but the VAR cancelled the goal for Abdoulaye Traore.
By then the game had shifted. Sven van Beek was sent off for Al-Shakhaniya in the 72nd minute, and the visitors never recovered. Mowafak Awad levelled the score in the 80th minute, then struck again in the 90th. And here's the thing — Bounedjah made it 4-2 in the 100th minute, which is what the data actually shows.
Al-Shamal dominated possession at 58 per cent and registered 14 shots to the visitors' nine. Seven shots came on target for the hosts compared with five for Al-Shakhaniya, though only three of the away side's chances were created. Al-Shamal had 97 attacks overall, while the visitors managed 90.
The result moves Al-Shamal to four points from two games, sitting fourth in the table. Al-Shakhaniya drop further to seventh with three points, their first defeat of the season. The hosts had drawn with Al-Rayan on their opening day before picking up their first win against Al-Garafa.
Substitutions told the story of the second half. Al-Shamal brought on Wesley Saïd for Hassan in the 73rd minute, then made three changes around the hour mark. Al-Shakhaniya made a single substitution in the 76th minute for Antonucci, then watched the game slip away.
What mattered was not the possession figures but the moments. Al-Shamal created three big chances to Al-Shakhaniya's one, and took them when it counted. The red card changed everything, but the hosts were already showing they could raise the tempo when they needed to.
