Al Ain beats Hatta, tops leaderboard
Al Ain was acclaimed ‘Winter Champions’ after knocking off Hatta 3-2 today evening at Round 7 of the Arabian Gulf League at Hatta Stadium.
Douglas Dyanfres and Caio Lucas gave Al Ain a 2-0 lead at 28th and 31st minutes respectively in the first half, while Saeed Al Katheeri cushioned his side’s lead at 80th minute.
It took the hosts till 81st minute to score their first goal by Issa Obeid followed by Samuel Rosa who scored 3 minutes into the stoppage time.
The win bolstered Al Ain’s top position on the leaderboard with 30 points, while Hatta froze at the 9th place with only 15 points.
Absolute prevalence
Right from the start, Al Ain entirely controlled the proceedings pressing on their rivals from the midfield and wings, but their myriad scoring chances only missed the finishing touch.
Al Ain’s livewire playmaker Omar Abdurrahman sent a smart pass to Al Katheeri, whose shot ended in the hands of Hatta goalkeeper, Obeid Rihan at 8th minute.
Only 2 minutes later, Khalid Abdurrahman made his appearance to replace defender Fawzi Fayez who sustained a serious injury that forced him out.
The return of Douglas
The Brazilian striker almost put his team to the lead at minute 26 when he fired a scorcher from outside the danger area; thanks to the cross bar which took up the slack of keeper.
The skilled player just couldn’t wait long. 2 minutes later he contrived a high ball sent from the right side by Bandar Al Ahbabi; and connected it to perfection with a cheeky header.
The power of the ‘Boss’
Another Brazilian luminous player, Caio Lucas, doubled Al Ain’s lead when his low but powerful long shot sneakily found its way into the net at the 31st minute.
Douglas ‘second’ header volleyed over the keeper and almost crossed the goal line only to be intercepted by defender Khamis Al Ajmani who saved his team another humiliation.
Taking his turn again, Douglas made a scathing solo run with only the keeper to beat, who managed to control the ball at 1+45 minute.
Maintaining superiority
Zlatko’s men continued their hunt for a third goal and did get that through Saeed Al Katheeri at minute 80. Saeed received a perfect low cross from Lucas and diverted it to the far post to hit the net after stubbing defender Khamis’ foot.
3 minutes later, Hatta reduced the gap when Essa Darwich’s low shot found its way to the net. 3 minutes into the stoppage time, Samuel Roza netted the second goal.
Al Ain: 3
Goals: Dyanfres Douglas ’28’, Caio Lucas ’31’ and Saeed Al Katheeri ’80’
Lineup: Khalid Essa, Fawzi Fayez, Mohannad Al Enzi, Lee Myung-joo, Ahmed Barman, Omar Abdurrahman, Bandar Al Ahbabi, Caio Lucas, Ibrahim Diakey, Saeed Al Katheeri and Dyanfres Douglas.
Substitutions: Khalid Abdurrahman IN \ Fawzi Fayez OUT “10”, Rashid Essa IN \ Ibrahim Diakey OUT “82”, Ali Eid Ghumeil IN \ Saeed Al Katheeri OUT “86”
Yellow cards: Lee Myung-joo “88”
Red cards: None
Hatta: 2
Goals: Essa Darwich “83”, Samuel Roza “3+90”
Lineup: Obied Rihan, Rashid Ahmed, Samuel Goncalves, Khamis Al Ajmani, Sabil Al Madani, Nicolay Stanley, Ali Al Khajah, Abdullah Al Malla, Adnan Al Balouchi, Maher Al Balouchi and Mohammed Al Falasi.
Substitutions: Mohammed Mal Allah IN \ Adnan Al Balouchi OUT “56”, Essa Darwich IN \ Rashid Jalal OUT “81”, Badr Al Moayni IN \ Khamis Al Ajmani OUT “82”
Yellow cards: Ali Al Khajah “68”, Mohammed Al Falasi “73”, Maher Al Balouchi “1+90”
Red cards: None
