Riffa hit five to maintain perfect start

TDT | Manama

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Riffa continued their perfect start to the Nasser bin Hamad Premier League season with an emphatic 5-1 victory over Manama last night.

Kuwaiti coach Mohamed Mashaal's side struck three times in the opening half-hour at Al Ahli Club Stadium before adding two more after the break to make it two wins from two.

Brazilian Rodrigo Yuri opened the scoring in the 12th minute after compatriot Wellington Moreira worked his way to the baseline and delivered into the six-yard box. The initial clearance fell kindly for Yuri, who forced home the rebound.

The Blues doubled their advantage just a minute later when Sayed Redha Isa squared for Dejan Georgijevic, allowing the Serbian striker to finish from close range.

The capital side hit back in the 17th minute as Zachary Hadji raced on to a through ball and slipped his finish beyond the advancing Dziugas Bartkus.

Riffa restored their two-goal cushion on the half-hour mark when Yuri delivered a dangerous set-piece into the area and Samuel Toscas applied the slightest of touches to make it 3-1.

Mashaal's men added a fourth in the 76th minute, with Isa producing a superb through ball to release Mehdi Abduljabbar, who calmly picked his spot.

It marked a scoring return for the striker, who is back at Riffa after last playing for the club in 2020 before spells with Manama, Al Khaldiya and, most recently, Iraq's Naft Missan.

Algerian Tayeb Meziani completed the scoring in stoppage time, firing a deflected effort from the edge of the box into the bottom corner after being found by Yuri.

The result moved the Sky Blues on to six points from two matches, level with Al Khaldiya, who remain top on goal difference following their 3-1 victory over A'ali earlier in the round.

Manama, coached by Bahraini Ismaeel Karami, remain on one point after suffering their first defeat of the campaign.

Elsewhere, Al Ahli claimed their first victory of the season with a 1-0 win over Hidd at the National Stadium.

After a goalless first half, Sayed Hashim Isa scored the winner in the 68th minute, cre- ating space with a clever feint before guiding a low finish into the far corner.

The result lifted Brazilian coach Jorvan Vieira's side to four points, while Chokri Bejaoui's Hidd remain on three.

Attention now turns to the third round, headlined by a meeting between the league's two remaining perfect sides when Riffa face Al Khaldiya on Thursday at 7pm. Holders Muharraq take on Manama at the same time.