On April 20th, the Central Stadium in Almaty hosted a pivotal match in the fifth round of the QFL-2024 championship, where the tournament leaders "Kairat" were defeated by one of the main favorites of the current season, "Aktobe", with a score of 3-1.
The excitement surrounding the match was very high, with interest building up well in advance. Tickets for the main football arena in Almaty were sold out a day before the match, and both teams did not disappoint the fans, showcasing high-level gameplay from the start.
Initially, the home team created dangerous moments actively, but then the guests leveled the game, keeping the "Kairat" goalkeeper on edge.
In the end, the team from West Kazakhstan earned a penalty, which was successfully converted by Alibek Kasym in the 40th minute, leading to a 1-0 score at halftime.
After a 15-minute break, the "Aktobe" players increased their advantage. In the 67th minute, the main forward of the guests, Maxim Samorodov, scored the second goal - 2-0. Following that, despite the "Kairat" team's massive attacks, Maxim Samorodov scored again, bringing the score to 3-0.
Towards the end of the match, the home team managed to score a prestige goal through Maxim Shvyrev's efforts. The final whistle confirmed the final score of 3-1 in favor of "Aktobe".
Thanks to this victory, the team from West Kazakhstan took the lead in the championship standings with 10 points. The main competitor of "Aktobe", the reigning champion of Kazakhstan, "Ordabasy", could only draw against "Kyzylzhar" (Petropavlovsk) in Shymkent with a score of 1-1.
In the other matches of the fifth round, the following results were recorded:
"Zhenis" - "Turan" - 1:0.
"Kaisar" - "Atyrau" - 1:1.
The remaining two games of this round will take place on April 21st, where the following teams will meet:
"Astana" - "Tobol" and "Zhetysu" - "Shakhter".
