Olunga and Al Duhail edge close to Champs League knockouts
Al Duhail's Michael Olunga (right) in action against Pakhtakor in their Asian Champions League Group "D" match on April 14, 2022. Al Duhail won 3-2
What you need to know:
- Belgian-Brazilian Edmilson struck a hat-trick in the game.
- Edmilson, who now boasts of four goals after he netted in 2-1 loss on April 7, helped the Qatari giants come from behind twice before notching the winner.
Michael Olunga's Al Duhail has taken over the lead in Group "D" of the 2022 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League after outlasting Pakhtakor Tashkent 3-2 in Buraidah, Saudi Arabia on Thursday.
Belgian-Brazilian Edmilson struck a hat-trick in the game.
Edmilson, who now boasts of four goals after he netted in 2-1 loss on April 7, helped the Qatari giants come from behind twice before notching the winner.
The Uzbek Super League champions Pakhtakor led 1-0 at halftime through an Oliver Sarkic goal off some brilliant footwork by Sardor Rashidoven on 44 minutes.
Playmaker Edmilson equalised on 66 minutes before coach Hernan Crespo's side fell behind again three minutes later from a Sardor Sabirkhodjaev goal.
Just like Al Duhail, Pakhtakor's celebrations were also short-lived as Edmilson levelled the scores on 71 minutes before he put the match to bed in the 84th minute with a curling effort.
The win was Al Duhail's second in a row as Kenyan captain Olunga had scored the only goal in their 1-0 victory over Iranian league runners up Sepahan in their second match.
Centre-forward Olunga, who scored the most goals in 2021 Champions League (nine), had a decent game against Pakhtakor but could not get his name on the score sheet.
Thursday's win extended Al Duhail's undefeated record against the Uzbeks to three. The Red Knights had won one match and then drawn another against Pakhtakor in 2013 Champions League. These two will renew their rivalry on April 18.
Al Duhail's schedule & results:
April 7 - Al Duhail 1-2 Al Taawoun
April 10 - Sepahan 0-1 Al Duhail
April 14 - Al Duhail 3-2 Pakhtakor
April 18 - Pakhtakor v Al Duhail
April 22 - Al Taawoun v Al Duhail
April 26 - Al Duhail v Sepahan
