AL KHOR, Qatar (Interstat) — Substitute Akram Afif scored twice to power Al Sadd to a 3-1 victory over Al Sailiya in a Qatar Stars League match Wednesday at Al Bayt Stadium.

Afif opened the scoring in the 10th minute and added a second goal just before halftime in the 48th. Fellow substitute Roberto Firmino extended the lead to 3-0 in the 70th minute. Al Sailiya’s Anwar El Ghazi netted a consolation goal in the 80th.

The result gave Al Sadd a winning start to its domestic campaign, while Al Sailiya began with a loss. The match featured yellow cards for Al Sadd’s Rafa Mújica and Al Sailiya’s Hashim Ali. Al Sadd outperformed a pregame projection that favored it to win by a narrower margin.