Latest news with #Ahli
Jordan News
5 days ago
- Sport
- Jordan News
Second Round of Jordan Pro League Kicks Off Thursday - Jordan News
Second Round of Jordan Pro League Kicks Off Thursday The second round of the Jordan Pro League gets underway Thursday, as teams look to gain an early edge in the standings following a lively opening round. اضافة اعلان The action kicks off with Ahli facing Baqa'a at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday at Petra Stadium in Al-Hussein Youth City. On Friday, two big clashes headline the schedule: Shabab Al-Ordon take on Ramtha at 6:00 p.m. at King Abdullah II Stadium in Qweismeh, while Faisaly lock horns with Salt at 8:45 p.m. at Amman International Stadium. Saturday sees Sahab host Wihdat at 6:00 p.m. at Al-Hassan Stadium in Irbid, before Jazeera meet reigning champions Hussein Irbid at 8:45 p.m. at Amman Stadium. The opening round featured no shortage of excitement: Hussein Irbid laid down a marker with a 5–2 win over Ahli, Ramtha stunned Wihdat 1–0, Faisaly came from behind to defeat Jazeera 2–1, Baqa'a claimed a 2–0 victory over Sahab, while Salt and Shabab Al-Ordon battled to a goalless draw. With momentum on the line, clubs will be eager to secure crucial points and build rhythm early in the campaign.
Ammon
5 days ago
- Sport
- Ammon
Second round of Jordanian Pro League kicks off Thursday
Ammon News - The second round of the Jordanian Pro League gets underway Thursday, as teams look to gain an early edge in the standings following a lively opening round. The action kicks off with Ahli facing Baqa'a at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday at Petra Stadium in Al-Hussein Youth City. On Friday, two big clashes headline the schedule: Shabab Al-Ordon take on Ramtha at 6:00 p.m. at King Abdullah II Stadium in Qweismeh, while Faisaly lock horns with Salt at 8:45 p.m. at Amman International Stadium. Saturday sees Sahab host Wihdat at 6:00 p.m. at Al-Hassan Stadium in Irbid, before Jazeera meet reigning champions Hussein Irbid at 8:45 p.m. at Amman Stadium. The opening round featured no shortage of excitement: Hussein Irbid laid down a marker with a 5–2 win over Ahli, Ramtha stunned Wihdat 1–0, Faisaly came from behind to defeat Jazeera 2–1, Baqa'a claimed a 2–0 victory over Sahab, while Salt and Shabab Al-Ordon battled to a goalless draw.
Qatar Tribune
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Bareiro brace as Rayyan beat Al Ahli to storm into Amir Cup final
Tribune News Network Doha A brace from Adam Bareiro and a penalty strike from Roger Guedes saw an attacking Al Rayyan blank Al Ahli 3-0 to storm into the final of HH Amir Cup football final at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on Sunday. Bareiro struck the opening goal in the 30th minute following a free kick and the Ahli defenders' attempts to clear the ball. But after a header and a deflection, the ball fell into a vacant space and Bareiro snatched the chance to strike with his left foot into the left corner of the net past a diving goalkeeper. Bareiro doubled the lead for Al Rayyan seven minutes later while he chested the ball after a long throw-in lob and turned about to beat a marking defender and then the goalkeeper. Al Rayyan attacked more in the second half keeping the Ahli defence on their toes. In the 86th minute, Al Rayyan's Hashim Shehata was fouled by Driss Fettouhi while leaping for a cross in front of the goal and the referee ruled a penalty. Guedes, who took the spot kick, struck firmly into the right side of the goal much to the agony of Al Ahli. On Monday, Umm Salal will meet Al Gharafa in the second semi-final at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium at 7pm.
The National
05-05-2025
- Sport
- The National
AFC Champions League Elite format change: was new centralised finals event in Saudi Arabia a success?
The Asian Football Confederation might be an independent overseer of the game on the continent. But if they were not actively hoping Al Ahli made it all the way to this season's AFC Champions League Elite final, then they will at least have breathed a sigh of relief that they ultimately did. After all, the regional governing body had taken a risk when they opted to reinvent their premier club competition, and play a new finals event at one centralised hub. Gone are the guarantees of crowds that were inherent in the old format, where the final was played in home and away legs. As we saw when Al Ain beat Yokohama F Marinos at a packed Hazza bin Zayed Stadium to clinch last year's final. This time around, the last four surviving teams from East Asia, and the same from the West, travelled to Jeddah to player the quarters, semis and final. The final was set for King Abdullah Sports City Stadium, the magnificent 62,000-seater structure around 30 minutes from Jeddah's city centre. When Al Ahli – or their city rivals Al Ittihad – play at the ground informally known as The Jewel, it pulsates with the sort of atmosphere that has few rivals anywhere in world football. So it stood to reason it would pop once Ahli made it all the way to the final. Their 2-0 win over Kawasaki Frontale on Saturday was an epic event. The atmosphere had been whipped into a frenzy over the course of the eight-day finals schedule. By the end, the city was enraptured by it. Jeddah was brought, if not quite to a standstill, then at least a very slow crawl. As traffic crept towards the stadium for the final, entrepreneurs hawked green and white scarfs, armed with card readers for quicker transactions. Thousands of ticketless supporters surged on the gates, leading for them to be closed while the security operation was beefed up. Once the hometown club had sealed their first Asian title, via goals from Galeno and Franck Kessie, joy coursed through the stands. As the stage for the trophy ceremony was being set, a number of players ran off to the dressing room to get their phones to record the celebrations. Riyad Mahrez took photos of his daughter on the stage. Ivan Toney made off with two match balls to give to his kids. And Ali Majrashi, the Ahli full-back and fan favourite, was crying tears of happiness. All of which is fantastic. But it does beg the question, what would it have been like had the final been played out between a side from Japan and one from South Korea, for example? Or even an Emirati, Qatari or Iranian club? There would have been as much tumbleweed as tickertape. Even when Al Nassr – a Riyadh-based club who have the sport's most recognisable player, Cristiano Ronaldo, in their ranks – faced Kawasaki Frontale in the semi-final, the ground was less than half full. The first phase of the competition was also revamped this year, along similar lines to the larger league structures than Uefa have done in Europe, too. There was then a round of double-legged ties – as the knock-out stage formerly was – in the last 16, as a bridge between the league phase and the finals. The three teams from Saudi Arabia topped the West zone, and they made it through their last 16 ties, too. Having Ahli and Al Hilal – another Riyadh club, but who have fans all over Saudi Arabia – in the finals phase guaranteed a decent turn out. The event will culminate in Jeddah again next year, and there are tweaks that can be made. For example, it would be fairer if the four quarter-finals are played over the space of two days, rather than three. Kawasaki, the winners of the last quarter-final, had to play all three matches within the space of six days. That is two days less than Hilal, who won the first quarter-final, would have had had they made it to the final. The tight schedule realistically favours the sides with the biggest budgets and therefore the bigger squads. You might assume that to be the Saudi Arabian clubs, but Kawasaki disproved that theory, thanks to clever management. They made six changes to their starting XI between the quarter-final and semi. They then made two more substitutions at half time in that game against Nassr, and had used all five replacements before 70 minutes were on the clock. It was all part of a perfectly executed masterplan by their coach, Shigetoshi Hasebe, who brought about the downfall of Ronaldo and Co. No wonder the club's fans love him. Ahead of the final, they were waving a sign carrying his image, with the message: 'Hasebe Frontale.' His expertise could only take them so far, and they were beaten by the best team in the competition in the final. Ahli definitely benefited from having such vociferous backing in the final, and they will be excited by the prospect of havening similar for their defence next season. Whether anyone from beyond Saudi Arabia - particularly those who have to travel from the other side of the continent - can mount a challenge is going to be intriguing to see.
The National
04-05-2025
- Sport
- The National
Roberto Firmino salutes Al Ahli's mentality after AFC Champions League victory
Roberto Firmino said Al Ahli Saudi had shown a 'monster mentality' in becoming champions of Asia for the first time. The Brazilian forward added another continental trophy to the one he had won in Europe when he played for Liverpool. He was named player of the match as Ahli beat Kawasaki Frontale of Japan 2-0 in the final of the AFC Champions League Elite at their own home ground in Jeddah. In so doing they became the third Saudi club to become champions of Asia, following Al Hilal – who they beat in the semi-final on Tuesday – and their city rivals Al Ittihad. 'I am very happy and proud of the team, and of course very happy to make history here at this club,' Firmino, the Ahli captain, said. 'It is not easy to become champions. We fight every match, and I call it the monster mentality. When you have the monster mentality to win all the games, then you become champions.' Firmino and Riyad Mahrez became the first players to win the top prize in each of Europe and Asia. They had previously done so at Liverpool and Manchester City respectively. 'This is why we play football, to play in matches like this,' Mahrez said. 'It is the first time for Al Ahli Club to win the Champions League. That was the aim. When we came here we wanted to make Al Ahli top of Asia and that is what we did. 'We played so good throughout the competition. We knew today would be a tricky game but we were so strong and so focused. 'That is how you win trophies and we are so happy. Now we have to celebrate and enjoy with family, friends.' The title success was vindication for Mattias Jaissle, the club's German manager. The 37-year-old coach was on the brink of the sack at the start of this year, with Massimiliano Allegri lined up as a high-profile replacement. However, the club's fans forced the powers that be to reconsidered, and the side have thrived in the time since. 'The incredible fans totally deserved this as well,' Jaissle said. 'It is nice to give something back to all the supporters, especially the ones who were always there, even when there were ups and downs. 'It is never easy. There is a lot of pressure in such a match, and the way the players dealt with it is not normal. They showed great personality.' Jaissle pointed out that his side were deserving champions. They went undefeated throughout the campaign, finishing second in the group phase on goal difference behind Al Hilal, who were the side they beat in the semi-final. 'I'm so proud of how they played throughout the journey in this competition,' Jaissle said. 'They put all their effort into that, and also the fans who always created an amazing atmosphere in support. We never took that for granted. 'Together you can achieve special things, and that is what happened tonight. I am almost speechless, but also all the respect for our opponents. 'Overall, to be frank, we totally deserved it.'
