Beirut Park
Spectators: 9190 (Terracing: 6957,
Seating: 2133, VIP seats: 100) The sun was shining, the grass was green and the audience cheered when Osama Abdul Alim got the match started through his kick off. Omar Haddad made a fantastic save in the 6th minute, when Saad Sheikh sent off a good shot on target. 6 minutes into the game, Tahir Yazan was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Byblos Phéniciens's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Red Star Beirut the free kick. In the 6th match minute, Byblos Phéniciens was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Tahir Yazan to maneuver through the defense. 9 minutes into the match, Mahdi Haddad had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Falah Abou Fakr. Red Star Beirut's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Mahdi Haddad was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 0-1. The supporters of Byblos Phéniciens booed when Red Star Beirut was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 11 match minutes in a wonderful position. Imad Ilias didn't get a good kick on the ball. Byblos Phéniciens's goalkeeper couldn't reach when Imad Ilias 16 minutes into the game got a good kick on the ball which found its way into goal just inside left pole. 1-1. Saad Sheikh sent away a hard shot on goal in the 22nd minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Falah Abou Fakr didn't succeed to prevent the ball from going into goal when Byblos Phéniciens's Mousa Mujab shot an unexpected shot in the crossbar's under edge and made 1-3 in the ordered_time% minute. Saad Sheikh who was well placed in front of the goal fired away a dangerous shot that in the 31stth minute tested the skills of Omar Haddad when he managed to save the team from getting behind. In the 33rd minute Osama Abdul Alim shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Falah Abou Fakr saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. In the 37th minute of the match, Imad Ilias tried to roll the ball into the goal by the right post, but Omar Haddad saw his intentions and got control of the ball before it passed the line. In the 39th minute Mousa Mujab shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Falah Abou Fakr saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 40 minutes into the match, Hilal Fathi had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Falah Abou Fakr. Red Star Beirut's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Hilal Fathi was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 1-4. Falah Abou Fakr took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Hilal Fathi, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. After a rather tough play, Red Star Beirut's Habib Najid got a free kick in the 44th minute. If Osama Abdul Alim had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 46th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Luck had favoured the away team in the first, and they walked off with a 1-4 lead.
The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Imad Ilias stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. In the 51stth minute of the game Saad Sheikh who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Byblos Phéniciens's Omar Haddad was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. 2-4 became the score in the 54th minute when Imad Ilias elegantly shot the ball into goal just under the crossbar. In the 59th minute, Tahir Yazan hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Thanks to some nice foot action and superb ball handling Imad Ilias in the 60th minute a chance for a shot on goal. With an extended leg and a bit of luck Omar Haddad prevented the ball from getting in the gole. Saad Sheikh fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 61st minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Omar Haddad having to interfere. In the 63rd minute, Hilal Fathi hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. In the 67thth minute of the game Imad Ilias who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Byblos Phéniciens's Omar Haddad was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. In the 69th minute, Borhan Ramadan got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. Falah Abou Fakr was out of position in the 72 minute of play, and Osama Abdul Alim capitalized on the mistake with a soft shot into the goal. Osama Abdul Alim really showed his touch with that goal: 2-5. With a little luck, Red Star Beirut's Falah Abou Fakr got control of the ball when Hilal Fathi tried to sneak it across the goal line. Osama Abdul Alim could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 77th minute of the match, but Falah Abou Fakr made a huge save. When the match clock showed 81 minutes, the score became 4-5 when Borhan Ramadan sped through Byblos Phéniciens's defense and sent away a curving shot that went into the net to the right of Omar Haddad. Saad Sheikh fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 84th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Omar Haddad having to interfere. Red Star Beirut's Falah Abou Fakr proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 87th minute of the match, managed to save Red Star Beirut from getting a goal against them. Red Star Beirut's Imad Ilias got a good chance for a goal in the 88th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. 90 minutes into the match, Byblos Phéniciens's goal looked a bit too open when Imad Ilias came free, but Omar Haddad reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. The Red Star Beirut fans' excitement grew in the 91st match minute when Red Star Beirut's Imad Ilias looked to have a clear shot with the ball near the goal. The shot wasn't hard, but the ball still rolled over the goal line to make it 5-5 before the goalkeeper had a chance to intervene. Osama Abdul Alim could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 96th minute of the match, but Falah Abou Fakr made a huge save. Both teams had looked equal from kick-off, and no-one was surprised when the match finally ended in a draw.
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