Bani Yas snatch late win to keep up pressure on Al Jazira in title race

Bani Yas 3-2 Al Nasr

Bani Yas edged out Al Nasr 3-2 at home in the Arabian Gulf League (AGL) to reclaim the second spot in the league table on Friday. 

It was an even start to the match with both teams giving their all to dominate possession in midfield. Goal scoring opportunities were scarce as the game lacked creative imagination in the attacking third. 

At the stroke of half-time, Mehdi Abeid opened the scoring for Al Nasr and went into the tunnel with their noses in front. However, the hosts levelled in the 58th minute when Joao Pedro scored the equaliser. But Al Nasr restored their lead through Toze in the 69th minute. 

The ball kept swinging from one post to another and this time it was Bani Yas' Sultan Alshamsi who brought his team back into the game with a goal. They kept mounting the pressure and their efforts reaped dividends when Fawaz Awana netted deep into injury time to score the winner. 

After the win, Daniel Isaila's men are just two points adrift of table-toppers Al Jazira who are on 44. Meanwhile, Al Nasr continue to be in 4th place with 36. 

Al Ain 4-0 Al Wahda

Meanwhile, Al Ain registered a comfortable 4-0 win over Al Wahda at the Al Nahyan Stadium, courtesy of a brace from Laba Kodjo.  They raced to a 3-0 lead at half time with Kodjo netting within just 10 minutes into the match and Caio Canedo doubling the lead five minutes later. 

Khalid Al Blooshi got his name on the scoresheet just after the 30th-minute mark to pile further misery on Al Wahda. Things got further complicated for the trailing team when Ahmed Rashid was sent off for a second booking in the 74th minute. With two minutes left on the clock, Kodjo completed his brace to end the night on a high. Al Ain are sixth in the table with 34 points while Wahda remain in the eighth position with 29. 

Ittihad Kalba 2-1 Al Dhafra

In the third match of the evening, Ittihad Kalba came back from behind to trounce Al Dhafra 2-1. Makhete Diop made the most of a defensive lapse to score the first goal of the match just before the halftime break.

Kalba's Romulo Dos Santos scored in the 64th minute to level the scores and when Dhafra's Pedro Conde turned the ball into his own net in the 84th minute, there was little doubt that the hosts would leave the ground with three points in their kitty. 

Ittihad Kalba are now on 29 points and Dhafra remain on 20 to be in the 10th position.