The King close in on title with 2-2 draw
sharjah — Welliton Soares scored late to hand Sharjah a 2-2 draw with Al Ain at Khalid bin Mohamed Stadium in the Arabian Gulf League on Wednesday, a press release said.
The King continue to top the league on 51 points and need only five more points to seal the title. Meanwhile, Al Ain ended their losing streak and now sit fourth on 39 points.
In other matches on Wednesday, Romulo dos Santos’ first-half penalty made the difference as Al Dhafra defeated Bani Yas 1-0 at Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan Stadium and Fujairah came from behind to earn a 3-3 draw with Al Wasl at Fujairah Club Stadium.
Also, Leonardo de Souza’s firsthalf goal guided Al Wahda to a 1-0 win over Shabab Al Ahli.
Jamal Maroof had a chance to find the back of the net after going one-on-one with Adel Alhosani in the 13th minute, but the Sharjah keeper pulled off a good save to keep the game goalless.
Two minutes before the halfhour mark, Igor Coronado opened the scoring for the hosts. The Brazilian sent the ball into the left corner of the net off a free-kick from outside the box to give his side a 1-0 advantage.
Sharjah continued to push forward hoping to double their lead ahead of the break but were denied by the Al Ain keeper. Coronado dribbled past two Sharjah players on the right flank before sending a smart pass to Mohamed Alshehhi inside the box but the latter’s shot was saved by Khalid Eisa in the 33rd minute.
It was Al Ain, however, who found the back of the net as they leveled the scoreline 10 minutes before the break. Bandar AlAhbabi’s long pass found Maroof who slotted the ball between Alhosani’s legs as they headed into halftime deadlocked at 1-1.
Alhosani saved his side from conceding a second goal only four minutes after the restart, as he pulled off a quick save to deny Khalid Al Baloushi.
After being 1-0 down, the Boss took the lead in the 72nd minute. After consulting the VAR, the referee awarded the guests a penalty and Tsukasa Shiotani converted from the spot.
However, Al Ain’s comeback didn’t last long as the King netted the equaliser two minutes from time. Welliton found Moatasem Yassin’s pass on the edge of the box and went in a one-on-one situation with Alhosani before slotting home.