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Relegation down to the wire as Al Shaab draw and Dibba win

Al Shaab 0-0 Al Wasl

Al Shaab stuttered for the second time in as many rounds, failing to confirm their Etisalat Pro League status for next season by drawing a blank in a 0-0 draw with Al Wasl at the Khaled bin Mohamed Stadium in Sharjah on Saturday night. A win would have guaranteed top flight safety for Al Shaab, but the draw, coupled with a win for Dibba Al Fujairah over already-relegated Kalba, means that the second relegation spot will not be confirmed until the conclusion of the campaign in next weekend’s final round of the 2012-2013 Etisalat Pro League season.

The first half was dominated in attack by the visitors Al Wasl, as Al Shaab struggled to deal with the pressure of the match and get a foothold on the game. Al Wasl’s Achille Emana saw two free kicks skim just past the post within the space of four minutes, in the 19th and 23rd minutes of the game, sandwiching an opportunity for Al Shaab in the 20th minute when Teixeira blasted wide after being put through by Michael Laurent N’dri. A long stoppage ensued just prior to half time as Al Shaab’s Juma Sanqoor suffered a head injury and left the field of play in an ambulance, to be replaced by Khalid Saqar. With Al Shaab’s nerves on edge, N’dri almost managed to steal through to opening the scoring in first half injury time but it remained 0-0 at the break.


Al Shaab could be thankful that it was clearly not Achille Emana’s day in front of goal as the big striker missed a 47th-minute header from Alfaro’s cross when he looked certain to score, and in the 60th minute an Emana shot from distance clattered the crossbar as the visitors kept the attacks coming, with Khalifa Abdulla also seeing his shot saved. Al Shaab’s front two of N’dri and Teixeira worked hard to combine together but they couldn’t find a way through and thus the relegation battle will continue right to the end of the season.


Kalba 1-2 Dibba Al Fujairah

Dibba Al Fujairah visited already-relegated Kalba on Saturday  night, knowing that an Al Shaab win over Al Wasl would relegate them regardless of the result, but Dr. Abdullah Misfer’s men stayed focused and came from a goal down to win 2-1 and keep their hopes of survival alive. Kalba, playing without any pressure now, took an early lead in the 7th minute when Amer Deeb put them 1-0 up, but Dibba showed strength and character to fight back and equalise through Najem Mohamed in the 71st minute. Their never-say-die attitude continued as Alex scored the winner in the 83rd minute, getting in behind Kalba's defense and slotting a low shot into the bottom corner, and coupled with Al Shaab’s failure to win, Dibba Al Fujairah live to fight another day with 2 points separating them from safety and one game left to play.