Al Jazira beat Hatta to move into 2nd spot as Al Wasl prevail over Fujairah
The Pride of Abu Dhabi doubled their lead 10 minutes later as Milos Kosanovic fired a freekick at the upper corner of the net to double his side’s advantage before haltime
Two first-half goals handed Al Jazira a comfortable 2-0 win over Hata at Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium in matchweek 7 of the Arabian Gulf League on Thursday.
Midway through the first half, Hata’s Abdullah Kazim forced Al Jazira keeper Ali Khasif into a good save, while Hata keeper Saeed Al Mesmari denied Abdulla Ramadan from opening the scoring.
It wasn’t until the 29th minute when Al Jazira broke the deadlock. Following a cross from the right side, Imoh Ezekiel headed the ball down into Ali Mabkhout’s path and the later fired a powerful effort past Al Mesmari.
The Pride of Abu Dhabi doubled their lead 10 minutes later as Milos Kosanovic fired a freekick at the upper corner of the net to double his side’s advantage before haltime.
Al Jazira came agonizingly close to sealing the victory with a third goal only six minutes before full time, when Ramadan’s let-footed effort hit the woodwork.
The win put Al Jazira temporarily in second place with 14 points, while Hata remain at the botom of the standings with one point only.
In another match of the day, Al Wasl defeated Fujairah 3-0. With the victory, they moved to the ninth spot in the standings with nine points. They have won three matches and lost four, with none ending in a draw.
Both the clubs -- Al Wasl and Fujairah -- were managed by football icon Diego Maradona, who died on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, on Friday, Al Nasr welcome Bani Yas at Al Maktoum Stadium at 6pm. Ater their impressive start to the season, Bani Yas’ campaign took a different direction as they failed to get a win in their past three league games to drop to sixth place on 10 points. On the other hand, Al Nasr’s results have been consistent as they won four games, lost to Sharjah and drew with Al Jazira to sit third, tied on 13 points with second-placed Al Wahda.
Al Dhafra will play with Kalba at Hamdan Bin Zayed Stadium at 6pm. The guests, who sit seventh, are currently one point only above Kalba on the standings. They both enter the game on the back of wins in matchweek 6, as Kalba cruised past Bani Yas 2-0 and Al Dhafra defeated Khorfakkan with the same scoreline.
The final match of the week will see Al Ain welcome Al Wahda at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium. The Clarets will be looking to extend their winning streak to four games to keep up with leaders Sharjah. Meanwhile, the Boss are on the mend ater earning two consecutive wins over
Al Dhafra and Al Wasl to move to fith place, tied on 11 points with Al Jazira, who sit fourth.
Earlier, the UAE Pro League signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Emirates Intellectual Property Association via web video conferencing.
The Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed by Emirates Intellectual Property Association Chairman Major General Dr Abdul Quddus Abdul Razzaq Al Obaidly and UAE Pro League Vice Chairman Jamal Hamed Al Marri, aligns with the Pro League’s strategy, which aims to strengthen partnerships and understanding with various bodies and institutions in a way that serves its future plans.
The Memorandum of Understanding aims to strengthen partnership efforts between the two parties in order to achieve the nation’s vision in areas related to serving citizens, in addition to raising legal awareness, highlighting the importance of protecting intellectual property rights in order to realize cultural awareness for everyone through seminars and workshops.
The Memorandum of Understanding terms align with the Pro League’s goals, which aim to coordinate with a network of partnerships that work towards organizing and developing football programs and events that are commited to consolidating a competitive sports environment.