Muharraq hit five past Shabab

TDT | Manama                                                

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com     

Title hopefuls Muharraq romped last night to a resounding 5-0 victory over Al Shabab in their week 18 match of the 2022/2023 Nasser bin Hamad Bahrain Premier Football League.

Victor Manuel Arboleda Murillo, Muhammad Sulumba and Sufyan Mahrouq were all on target for the victors, with Murillo scoring an impressive hat-trick.

With the result, Muharraq claimed their ninth win in 17 matches as they improved to 33 points.

They are now just a single point behind solo league leaders Manama, who have also played 17 games.

Shabab, meanwhile, suffered their ninth loss after 18 contests and remained on 23 points.

They are in the bottom half of the table but are clear of relegation danger. In last night’s contest, Muharraq had a goal disallowed in the eighth minute for an offside infarction.

But that didn’t stop them from taking the lead soon after as Murillo headed home from close range in the 20th minute.

The Colombian pounced on a rebound from a shot by teammate and Malawi professional Muhammad Sulumba that was punched away by Shabab goalkeeper Hamad Al Doseri.

Just two minutes on, Muharraq doubled their advantage and it was Murillo who was on target once again. He was on the receiving end of a cross from the left supplied by Mahrouq, and he made no mistake with his chance to send the ball home from close range.

In the 32nd minute, Muharraq went up 3-0 when Sulumba scored with a short stab in the face of goal off a fine low cross from the right.

This time it was Murillo who supplied the assist. Shabab then had a goal in the 40th minute disallowed.

Ahmed Khouri headed in off a cross from Ali Mohammed Issa, but it was cancelled, leaving Muharraq with the comfortable lead at the break.

After the re-start, Murillo completed his hat-trick in the 63rd minute on a one-on-one with Al Doseri on a quick counter-attack.

He was being chased down by a pair of Shabab defenders but kept his composure and slotted home from an acute angle to put Muharraq ahead 4-0.

In the 79th minute, Mahrouq fired in Muharraq’s fifth with a curling shot from a metre outside the penalty area, applying the final nail in the coffin.