Bourj FC wins 1-0 away at Salam Zgharta in the first round of the Lebanese Premier League

Sunday, the 22nd of September 2019, 16:00 local time (13:00 UTC), Zgharta, Salam Zgharta Stadium, Lebanon, the first round of the Lebanese Premier League.

This was the third match out of the last four official matches for Bourj FC in which they met Salam Zgharta - the other two were in the Challenge Cup, the last game of the group stage and the cup final. Bourj FC have won all three matches without conceding a goal!

Actually, the strong Bourj defense was the main reason for their win. In the first half, Bourj FC was the better side and deservedly scored: a free kick was executed by Hamza Abboud inside the area, Ibrahim Abou Hamdan passed to the Brazilian striker Thiago do Amaral, whose shot ended up in the net: 0-1 (19'). The visitors dictated most of the pace of the game but could not double their advantage.

In the second half, the home side dominated clearly but was unable to penetrate the opposite defense. Pressure increased towards the end of the match and in the added time Salam Zgharta claimed a penalty, which the referee did not award.

Salam Zgharta: Mostafa Matar - Ahmad Masri, Hamza Kheir, Mostafa Sall, Yasser Achour - Jean-Jacques Yammine, Hisham Nabulsi (Hassan Kadi 77') - Akram Trad (Ali Basma 73'), Vinicius Calamari, Taha El Hussein (Walid Fatouh 53') - Dauda Cosmos. Head coach: Ahmad Kazem.

Bourj FC: Mohammed Santina - Hamza Abboud, Abdelfatteh Achour, Ismaila Intiri, Walid Ismail - Mohammed El Faour, Hussein Ibrahim (Mohammed Qassem 75') - Mohammed Jaafar, Thiago do Amaral (Mohammed Jawad Abou Khalil 81'), Ibrahim Abou Hamdan (Hussein Al-Outa 68') - Stephen Sarfo. Head coach: Mohammad Dakka.

Referee: Mohammed Issa.

Yellow cards: Hisham Nabulsi 38' - Stephen Sarfo 38', Ismaila Intiri 45', Walid Ismail 82', Mohammed Qassem 88'.

This is the first match for Bourj FC in the Lebanese Premier League after 16 years and it ended with an away victory, 1-0, which is a good sign that the team can actually perform and finish in the first half of the table this season. The next match will be Saturday, the 28th of September, against the local rivals Shabab El Bourj. Bourj FC are officially hosts but the match will be played in Sidon, at Saida International Stadium.