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Al Jazira maintain first victory in Etisalat Cup

Abu Dhabi-based Al Jazira came from behind to maintain their 1st victory in Etisalat Cup after beating Al Ahli 3-1 in the match played this evening November 12th in the 2nd round at Al Shamkha pitch in Bani Yas. The winners have raised their tally to 4 points the same balance of the losers. The game was played at Bani Yas ground due to the ongoing maintenance in Mohammed Bin Zayed stadium which is going to host The FIFA Clubs World Cup scheduled to kick off next month.

The visiting team dominated the opening minutes of the match putting more pressure on their rivals' defense, but Al Jazira came afterwards to play a balanced game. The losers' efforts were rewarded in the 27th minute when Al Jazira ex- player Abdullah Abdul Gadir gave his new team Al Ahli the lead capitalizing on the ball sent by Binga and it  rebounded  off the goalkeeper Khalid Al Sinani .

Al Jazira tried their best to level the score but they couldn't as they made very weal attempts. But their continuous work helped them to net the equalizer with a perfect header from Ali Mabkhout who benefited of the ball switched by from the right flank by his teammate Bary from Brazil only 3 minutes from the final whistle to end the 1st half with a 1-1 draw.

The two teams demonstrated a neat football after the break, creating many chances especially by Al Jazira who looked the better side. Their midfielder Ali Mabkhout came close to score the 2nd goal 9 minutes into the 2nd half when his fierce left footer was saved by Al Ahli's custodian Saif Yousuf before being cleared from inside the box by a defender. Al Jazira looked the better side after controlling the major parts of the 2nd half. Their Argentinean player Gilgado made it 2-1 in the 72nd minute after a number of perfect and organized passes. The Brazilian player Binga was to equalize the game but his fierce shot was deflected by the goalkeeper Khalid Al Sinani to a corner. It was the only dangerous chance for Al Ahli in the whole 2nd session. Ibrahima Diaky squandered an opportunity in the 90th minute when he sent a weak shot that controlled by the goalkeeper, but he came a few seconds later to secure the 3 points for his team with a lovely header to give a 3-1 win for his squad.

In the 2nd match of the day the visitors Al Nasr also came from behind to overcome the hosts team Dubai with a 4-3 win. The home squad played a brilliant game and they were able to score 3 goals in the 1st half. Their French player Michael Laurent gave them the lead in the 21st minute and added the second 5 minutes later. His colleague Abca Bakr Camara drived the ball home to give his team a 3-0 lead. But in the last minute of the first half, the Ecuadorian player Carlos Tennerio pulled one back to reduce the deficit to make it 3-1.

The winners doubled their efforts after the break giving their rivals hard time and they looked the more dangerous side than the home team who failed to keep on their lead. Al Nasr slammed home 3 successive goals through Esmail Bangoura who scored twice in the 52nd minute off a penalty and in the 85th minute and Carlos Tennerio made it 4-3 in the last minute. Al Nasr raised their tally to 4 points in the 3rd place and Dubai remain with 2 points in the 5th position of the 1st group.

Al Wasl concluded the 2nd round with a lone- goal win over hosts Al Shabab to stay on top of the 2nd group with 5 points whereas the losers have 4 points the same balance of Al Ahli. The Brazilian player Olivera netted the lone goal of the game with a nice header 4 minutes before the end of the 1st half.

The 2nd round will be concluded on Saturday November 13th with 3 matches. Al Wahda will host Al Dhafra at 4:55pm, Kalba take on Sharjah, kick off at 4:45pm and Al Ain and Bani Yas will play the last game of the day at Tahnoon Bin Mohammed stadium at Qattara at 8pm.