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Bani Yas still chasing Championship leaders Al Jazira

 

The two top teams of the Etisalat Pro-League Competition, Al Jazira and Bani Yas, have retained their leadership positions after emerging winners in Round 13 matches.

Al Jazira, who are sitting well on top of the table, beat Sharjah 3-0 at Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, while their nearest competitors Ban Yas snatched three valuable points defeating their hosts Al Dhafra 2-0 to raise their tally to 28 points. Bani Yas are still behind Al Jazira by 7 points, but are ahead of their nearest rivals Al Ahli also by 7 points. Al Ahli are currently in third position with 21 points after losing to Al Wasl in their last game 1-2. They were forced to play a whole session against Al Wasl with ten players after their striker Ismail Al Hammadi was shown the red card only seconds before the break. That shortage was capitalized on by the home team who netted their two goals in the second half, with the win raising their tally to 21 points and placing them in 4th position. Al Wasl enjoyed their first victory in 125 days, with their last win coming in Round 6 when they beat Kalba 2-1 to top the standings with 15 points. But their time at the top was short lived after losing 1-3 defeat to Al Jazira in Round 7.

Three matches of Round 13 ended with a 2-0 result - Bani Yas, Al Wasl and Al Shabab got the better of Al Dhafra, Al Ahli and Dubai respectively. In the other matches, bottom of the table Kalba surprised Abu Dhabi-based Al Wahda with a 5-3 victory, and Al Nasr defeated Al Ain 2-1.

Foreign and local strikers shared the 20 goals netted in the Round, with 10 each between them. André Sangahoor, Bani Yas' Senegalian player, raised his balance to 13 goals to remain on top of the goal scorers table followed by Al Jazira's Ibrahima Diaky with 10 goals and Al Wahda's Brazilian player, Fernando Bayano who is in 3rd position with 9 goals. Bayano did not take part in the game against Kalba, along with his two teammate defenders Hamdan Al Kamali and Basheir Saeed, due to injury and suspension.

Al Jazira are so far proving the best team in both defense and offense after scoring 34 goals and conceding only 9. They also remain the only squad that hasen't lost a single match since the start of the Etisalat Pro-League.

Kalba's shock defeat of Al Wahda was the biggest victory in Round 13 and was their second win since the start of the Etisalat Pro-League season. This will help their fight out of relegation zone and increases their points to 7. Second from the bottom is Al Ain with 11 points, who actually lost to Kalba 4-1 in Round 9. Along with Kalba and Al Ain, the situation for both Dubai and Al Dhafra is also critical with all four squads in danger of relegation. Their upcoming head-to-head matches will therefore play a vital role in avoiding this fate.

Both Al Wahda and Sharjah have slipped four steps downward, with Al Wahda in 7th spot and Sharjah in 8th position. While Al Wasl, Al Nasr and Al Shabab sit in 4th, 5th and 6th positions respectively.