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Emir Cup: Olunga on target as Al Duhail SC beat Al-Shamal to reach semis
The towering Harambee Star scored his fourth goal for the Qatari club as they qualified for the semi-finals on Tuesday
Kenya international Michael Olunga was on target to help Al Duhail SC beat Al-Shamal 2-0 in the quarter-finals of the Emir Cup on Tuesday.
The towering striker, who joined the Qatari club from Kashiwa Reysol of Japan, started in the game played at Suheim bin Hamad Stadium and put his team ahead in the 45th minute before Abdullah Al-Ahrak grabbed the second goal in the 84th minute.
Duhail started the game on a high note, raiding their opponents with long balls, which Al-Shamal did well to contain, but in the 20th minute, Olunga received a through-ball from Ian Diakite which he did well to control but his final shot was weak and did not trouble the keeper.
In the added minutes of extra-time, Olunga gave Duhail the lead after he composed himself inside the box, to outmuscle one defender from Al-Shamal before planting the ball into the net with his left foot and into the net, though the ball took a slight deflection off a Shamal player.
Duhail went into the break enjoying a 1-0 lead and on resumption, they kept pressing their opponents and they got the second goal when Al-Ahrak unleashed a shot from outside the box which sizzled past the defenders and into the net for the 2-0 win.
The former Gor Mahia star has now scored four goals in the tournament, having notched a hat-trick during the team’s 6-0 win against Al Ahli Doha en route to reaching the quarters.
Five days ago, Olunga and his team missed out on a chance to bag their first silverware this campaign after they lost 2-0 to rivals Al Sadd in the final of the Qatar Cup.
Striker Baghdad Bounajah was the hero for Al Sadd, who are coached by former Barcelona player Xavi, as he notched the two goals - the opener coming in the ninth minute and the second in the 77th minute.
Olunga did not start in the game but was introduced in the second half with his team trailing 1-0 and almost immediately after he came on, Al Sadd added their second goal as Bounajah beat Duhail’s offside trap and rounded the keeper before finishing into the open goal.
Duhail will now shift their focus to the Qatar Stars League when they travel away to face Al Kharaitiyat on March 7.
