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Etisalat Pro League Round 21 Review

Round 21 of the Etisalat Pro League served up 28 goals in its seven matches, with some high scores and late drama as the season heads towards a climax. Wins for Al Ain, Al Ahli, Al Nasr and Al Shabab saw movement at the top end of the table, whilst victories for Al Shaab and Dibba Al Fujairah at the bottom helped their bids for survival from relegation.

The first game of the round kicked off at 5:50pm at the Kalba Union Sports & Cultural Club Stadium, with League leaders Al Ain running out 3-1 winners. Two goals from Romanian midfielder Matei Mirel Radoi sandwiched a reply from Kalba’s Saoud Faraj, and Asamoah Gyan netted his 25th League goal of the season in injury time to wrap up the points for Al Ain. The reigning champions have a 13-point lead at the top of the table with 55 points after 21 games, and in stark contrast the losers Kalba remain rooted to the bottom with just 10 points, facing a real threat of relegation.

Sunday evening saw five goals at the Zabeel Stadium as plucky Dibba Al Fujairah came from behind to beat Al Wasl 3-2. Al Wasl took an early lead through Khalifa Abdulla after just 11 seconds, before Mohamed Al Antaly and Khalid Masoud put the visitors into the lead either side of half time. Al Wasl equalised as Khalifa Abdulla bagged his brace but it was Dibba who left with all three points as Bilal Najaren’s goal won the game in the 78th minute. The result comes as a huge boost to Dibba Al Fujairah’s survival hopes, as they increased their points tally to 14 but still remain second from bottom in the drop zone. Al Wasl meanwhile continued their inconsistent form this season and find themselves in 9th place on 24 points.

The late kick-off on Sunday took place at the Al Nahyan Stadium, with Al Wahda hosting Al Nasr. The visitors from Dubai left with all three points after a last-gasp 1-0 winner from Brazilian midfielder Leonardo Lima, moving Al Nasr up to 4th in the League with 36 points, whilst Al Wahda remain on 32 points and slip to 7th.

Monday’s four games produced 18 goals, with Al Shabab recording the biggest win of the round as they defeated Al Jazira 5-1 at the Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum Stadium. After a goalless first half, the match exploded into action with Ciel and Edgar Bruno giving the home side a 2-0 lead in the space of four minutes, before Ali Mabkhout replied for the visitors two minutes later. But their hope of getting back into the game was short-lived as it took just six minutes for Al Shabab to carve Al Jazira’s defense open, with Ciel bagging his brace and Hamdan Qassim and Essa Obaid completing the rout. The win moves Al Shabab up to 6th on 33 points, whilst Al Jazira’s slump under new coach Luis Milla continues as they fall to 5th on 36 points.

Dubai and Al Dhafra played out a 2-2 draw at the Dubai Stadium in Al Awir, with Rami Yaslam scoring a brace for the home side and Makhete Diop also scoring twice for Al Dhafra, getting a late equaliser in injury time to take a point away from the game. Al Dhafra are 8th in the League with 28 points whilst Dubai are 10th on 23.

Al Shaab came from behind to beat Ajman 2-1 at the Khaled bin Mohammed Stadium in Sharjah, with Michael Laurent N’dri scoring a brace after Boris Kabi had put the visitors ahead in the 10th minute with his 18th goal of the season. The win gives Al Shaab more breathing space in 12th position, just above the relegation zone with a total of 17 points, whilst Ajman are one place ahead of them in 11th with 22 points.

Concluding the round, Al Ahli brushed aside Bani Yas to reclaim second spot in the League with a confident 4-1 win at the Bani Yas Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Ismaeel Al Hammadi opened the scoring for Al Ahli with the team’s 50th League goal of the campaign, before captain Grafite got his 24th goal of the season to make it 2-0. Adnan Al Beloshi and Majed Hassan completed the scoring for Al Ahli and Nawaf Mubarak pulled a consolation back for Bani Yas. The two sides swapped places in the table, with Al Ahli now 2nd on 42 points and Bani Yas 3rd on 41 points, with five rounds of the 2012-2013 Etisalat Pro League remaining.