Moussa Sow treble sends Al Ahli through to Arabian Gulf Cup final at Shabab’s expense

Al Shabab 2 Al Ahli 3

Al Ahli fought back from a goal down to secure their place in the Arabian Gulf Cup final courtesy of a Moussa Sow hat-trick as Al Shabab ended the match with 10 men following Mahmood Qassim’s dismissal.

After a scoreless first half, the game exploded into life 30 seconds after the restart as Brazilian striker Jo curled home from the edge of the area to give the hosts the lead.

Sow equalised on 71 minutes when he latched onto a flick by Walid Abbas to beat Shabab goalkeeper Salem Abdullah at the back post.

Khamis Esmail wants to repay new club Al Ahli after five ‘beautiful’ seasons at Al Jazira

Shabab right-back Qassim was shown a red card three minutes later for a crude challenge on Sow and the Senegalese forward was then penalised for a foul on Mohammed Ayed that resulted in a penalty for Shabab, but Luvannor Henrique’s spot kick was easily saved by Majed Naser.

Sow was to make Shabab pay with his second goal on 79 minutes, tapping home a flick from Asian Player of the Year Ahmed Khalil, who was introduced as a second-half substitute. Sow completed his hat-trick nine minutes from time.

A late strike from Azizbek Haydarov set up a nervy finish, but Cosmin Olaroiu’s men held on to set reach the final where they will face Al Wahda.

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Moussa Sow treble sends Al Ahli through to Arabian Gulf Cup final at Shabab’s expense

Al Shabab were reduced to 10 men following Mahmoud Qassim's second-half dismissal but Cosmin Olaroiu's men held on despite a nervy final five minutes to set up a championship match against Al Wahda.