Syrians 1 - 5 Dimashq (392861574)

10124 spectators arrived at Syrians Arena, where weather conditions were pretty good for football. Harald Bernd was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Noldi Wuhrmann and Scotty Geudens. Everyone was excited about the upcoming Dimashq derby and the crowd was divided evenly. Syrians decided to use a 4-4-2 set up. They fielded: Deeb - El Khatib, Al-ali, Alwani, Hamwia - Al-ali, Al Hussein, Zeidan, Al Bushi - Abou Tok, Ahmadouk.

A 3-4-3 alignment was the formation of choice for Dimashq. Starters: Al Beef - Ajanji, Safadi, Issa - Margueritte, Mirza, Ajanji, Al Imam - Aintzuberro, Cartagena, Mandelli.

Syrians could have put themselves ahead after 2 minutes but Z. Abou Tok missed a volley shot on a ball coming in from the right. G. Mandelli finished off the counterattack of Dimashq from the left rather easily, making the score 0 - 1. There was concern in the stands when, at the 20 minute mark, Syrians's F. Alwani hit the ground hard, but he refused the attention of the trainer and rejoined his teammates on the pitch. 24 minutes into the match, Syrians's G. Al-ali maneuvered his way around the opposition on the left flank, delighting the crowd with his twists and turns. The effort paid off as the ball found the back of the net, evening the score at 1 - 1. N. Hamwia's lack of experience almost gave Dimashq a goal after 28 minutes, but the shot went right into the keeper's arms. A mistake by the home side's central defence after 29 minutes allowed M. Ajanji to score for Dimashq. The scoreboard now read 1 - 2. Dimashq increased the lead to 1 - 3 as H. Margueritte scored from the penalty spot, putting the ball in near the top left corner. 1 - 3 was the halftime score. Dimashq enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 60 percent of possession.

F. Ajanji of Dimashq took advantage of a mistake on the home side's right after 60 minutes which increased the away team's lead to 1 - 4. The referee showed Syrians's A. Zeidan the yellow card after a particularly nasty challenge. A. Al Beef of Dimashq had to be helped off the pitch as an injury meant he was unable to finish the game. E. Kauth came in to finish the match. The visitors nearly scored again after 70 minutes, but a superb save by M. Deeb kept H. Margueritte's free kick out of the net. The visitors' M. Ajanji took advantage of a misunderstanding between the home side's goalie and centre backs 79 minutes into the match. 1 - 5 for Dimashq. By now, the players in Dimashq felt that victory was guaranteed and began to play it safe, focusing on defence and not risking too much going forward. A defender managed to keep the ball from crossing the goal-line after a curling shot coming in from the right from O. Al Imam after 84 minutes, and prevented Dimashq from going up another goal. Syrians had to make a substitution after 89 minutes. Z. Abou Tok limped off the field and was replaced by S. Al Sayed. Dimashq had most of the ball, with 66 percent of possession.

Syrians's best player was S. Al Sayed. However, N. Hamwia made a disastrous appearance. Most important Dimashq player was O. Al Imam. A. Safadi on the other hand, had a terrible day. The match ends 1 - 5.