Brave Al-Hodoud exit Confederation Cup

الأحد، 05 أكتوبر 2008 - 22:31

كتب : Hatem Maher

Ten-man Harras Al-Hodoud produced a spirited display but lost hopes of reaching the CAF Confederation Cup final following a 1-1 draw with Club Africain in Tunisia.

The draw put Al-Hodoud, who needed to win to stand any chance of advancing to the final, in third place of Group A with seven points.

The military club lie one point behind second-placed Club Africain and three adrift of leaders Sfaxien with one match to go.

The winner of Sfaxien’s clash against Club Africain will determine the group leaders who will advance to the competition’s finale.

Club Africain midfielder Oussama Sellami put the hosts ahead in the 33rd minute when he converted a penalty after Hani Saied made a clumsy challenge on Youssef Mouihbi.

Al-Hodoud striker Ahmed Abdul-Ghani netted his fourth goal in the Confederation Cup to grab the equalizer five minutes after the restart.

He precisely controlled Ahmed Eid’s low cross inside the area before drilling a right-footed shot that went in at the near post.

Eid could have turned from provider to scorer shortly after but his powerful low drive went just wide of the post.

Al-Hodoud’s hopes of gaining the lead were dealt a major blow when defender Saied was sent off in the 58th minute for a second bookable offense.

Club Africain fanes threw bottles at Saied while he was walking off the pitch. The 25-year-old responded by raising his middle finger towards them.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Al-Hodoud still pushed forward seeking to score much-needed goal but their efforts were to no avail.

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