Bani Yas beat Kalba; Al Ain hold Al Wasl in Arabian Gulf League

Abu Dhabi - Bani Yas raised their tally to 39 points

Second-half goals helped Bani Yas earn a 2-0 victory away from home over Ittihad Kalba in matchweek 19 of the Arabian Gulf League on Saturday.

Few chances were created on both sides in the first half, which ended in a goalless draw. The second half, however, was eventful as it saw two goals and a red card.

Ittihad Kalba were dealt a huge blow, as they were reduced to 10 men when Mohamed Sabeel was sent off in the 64th minute due to rough challenge.

The guests capitalised on the Tigers’ numerical disadvantage, as they broke the deadlock in the 74th minute, thanks to an inch-perfect header from Gastón Suarez.

Only five minutes later, Nicolas Gimenez doubled Bani Yas’ lead with a powerful long-range effort that nestled into the back of the net.

Bani Yas raised their tally to 39 points and moved temporarily to second place above Sharjah who still have a game in hand. Meanwhile, Ittihad Kalba remained in ninth place with 26 points.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo Mendes’ goal cancelled out Caio Canedo opener as Al Ain and Al Wasl played out a 1-1 draw at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.

No goals were shown from both sides in the first half with some poor efforts from strikers to score the opening goal.

Al Ain needed 10 minutes after the restart to break the deadlock, as Caio Canedo latched on Laba Kodjo’s rebound and tapped home to hand the Boss a 1-0 lead.

The home side’s lead was short-lived, as Al Wasl netted the equalizer only four minutes later when Ronaldo Mendes fired a powerful effort from outside the box, leaving keeper Khalid Eisa helpless.