Sparky’s Column

Buy and Sell

Match Of The Week lived up to its billing both on and off the pitch. A massive crowd of ten thousand were treated to some great entertainment in a thrilling two all draw. The game was a huge test of Diego Maradona's ability as coach and his team didn't let him down. The passion of the fans transferred itself onto the pitch as the game was played out at a frenetic pace. Al Wasl were depleted by the loss of Juan Mercier to injury and Majed Nasser. Al Ain by contrast were at full strength with Assamoah Gyan taking centre stage with everyone expecting the Ghanaian to get on the score sheet. He didn't disappoint with a brace including a late penalty to secure a point for Al Ain.

The Assamoah Gyan will he stay, won't he stay, debate has been on the back pages of the papers here and in the UK. Martin O'Neil, manager of Gyan's parent club Sunderland has stated that he sees his future away from the North East of England. The league's top scorer has made it perfectly clear that he wants to stay in the UAE, reaffirming that by pointing to the clubs badge after one of his goals.  There will be a lot of back and forth between the two clubs before anything is confirmed but the smart money is on Gyan having another season in the UAE.

One complaint by a lot of fans is the availability of club shirts in the shops. One of the clubs addressing this is Al Ahli, they have a club shop on site selling official gear. The weekends match against Dubai club coincided with the launch of an all black kit. The club shop had Cannavaro onsite which obviously helped bring people through the doors and boy did it work, the limited edition shirts selling out pre match. It's a sign that the appetite for club merchandise is there and it's an opportunity that the Pro League teams should grasp with both hands.

Finally it was a privilege to be commentator on the Wasl Al Ain match this weekend. The pace of the match was such that I could barely keep up and you will never hear me criticise fellow commentators, it's a lot harder than it sounds. I think I felt as tired as some of the players post match.