ALEPPO (Interstat) — Al Ittihad Aleppo scored twice after halftime and held off Paro 2-1 on Friday in a competition match, turning a tight contest with late cards and substitutions into a home victory. Alef Firmino broke the deadlock in the 56th minute, and Mohammad Rihanieh supplied the deciding goal in the 86th. Paro scored once and could not answer after Rihanieh’s late finish.

Paro, the visiting side, absorbed pressure early and tried to counter through the midfield. Wangdi N. was booked in the 23rd minute for Paro, and Rihanieh was cautioned in the 32nd for Al Ittihad Aleppo. Neither side found the net before halftime. Al Ittihad Aleppo increased its tempo after the break and finally broke through when Firmino scored in the 56th minute.

Al Ittihad Aleppo improved to two wins and one loss in this competition and three wins and one loss across all competitions. Paro moved to no wins, two losses and one draw in the competition and one win, two losses and one draw overall. The result left Al Ittihad Aleppo with a second competition win of the season and kept Paro without a competition victory.

Firmino recorded a goal in 90 minutes. Rihanieh recorded a goal and a yellow card in 90 minutes. Goalkeeper Shaher Alshakir and Anas Al Dahan each had an assist in 90 minutes. Rihanieh’s goal gave Al Ittihad Aleppo the cushion it needed after Firmino had opened the scoring early in the second half.

Paro made its first substitution in the 57th minute when Wangchuk K. came on. Ichimura R. followed in the 70th. Mishima Y. and Namgyel T. entered in the 84th. Al Ittihad Aleppo brought on Mane S. in the 61st minute, Dahhan H. in the 70th and Al Ahmed A. in the 79th. The substitutions gave both sides fresh legs as the game stretched in the final half-hour.

Paro’s Oluwaseun F. A. was booked in the 85th, and Paro’s Ndour T. was booked in the 89th. The match grew increasingly physical over the final half-hour, with three yellow cards shown after the 84th minute. Al Ittihad Aleppo’s back line and goalkeeper Shaher Alshakir protected the late lead as Paro pushed for an equalizer. Paro’s best response came through set pieces and late pressure, but the visitors could not find a second goal. Al Ittihad Aleppo managed the closing stages with its substitutions and kept Paro from turning its possession into a tying goal. The late bookings disrupted the flow of the match and added stoppage time as Paro searched for a way back into the contest.

The result marked another tight chapter in the competition for both sides. Al Ittihad Aleppo had lost its previous competition match against Al Ansar SC but rebounded with a home win. Paro, which had drawn at Ahal and beaten Thimphu City earlier in the season, remained without a competition victory. Paro had also lost 2-1 to Al Ansar SC, drawn 2-2 at Ahal and won 2-0 at Thimphu City. Al Ittihad Aleppo had beaten Ahal 5-1, lost 2-0 to Al Ansar SC and beaten Horriya 3-1 in other competition matches. The home side’s second goal came after Paro had pushed numbers forward in search of an equalizer.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Paro 6, Al Ittihad Aleppo 2. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Paro with an 89.7 percent probability to win. Al Ittihad Aleppo had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.25. The total score of 3 went over the over/under line of 3.5.