Fujairah seal first win of the season

Barnaby Read 18:54 22/10/2014
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  • On target: Boubacar Sanogo was on target for Fujairah.

    New boss Abdelhak Benchikha will be well aware of the task ahead at Ittihad Kalba after watching his side fall to a 2-1 defeat away to Fujairah just hours after being appointed.

    It took Fujairah just two minutes to open up a Kalba defence bereft of confidence, shape and desperately crying out for leadership as the home side struck a post in a huge let off for the visitors.

    Their reprieve didn’t last long. Fujairah took the lead in the 19th minute thanks to Boubacar Sanogo’s third AGL strike of the season.

    More woeful defending allowed Sanogo to drift in between three Kalba defenders and stab home from six yards. The guilty parties were as hopelessly adrift of their man as their team are at the foot of the table.

    In first-half stoppage time Wael Ayan had a golden opportunity to level things up for Kalba but he couldn’t bury his second goal in as many matches. Instead the unmarked Syrian headed wide when it was easier to score.

    That was just about as good as it got for Kalba and the manner of Mohamed Khalfan Ali’s second goal for Fujairah summed up the difference in spirit between the two teams.

    Ali, just a minute after entering the fray as a second-half substitute, chased down a loose ball, came away from a 50/50 in possession and exchanged a neat one-two on the edge of the area before slotting calmly past Mohamed Osman Barout.

    Kalba did manage to get a consolation with ten minutes to play. Luis Leal converted at the third attempt after first his penalty and then his effort from the rebound were saved by Ayyoub Al Marzouqi. Leal’s bundled finish, highlighting how his side got through the ninety minutes of football.

    Fujairah’s first win of the season gives manager Abdulwahab Abdulqadir some much needed breathing space. Whether he’s gasping for air by the end of week 8 will depend on his ability to build on this result.

    For Kalba it means they have just the single point from their first seven games and the club and its fans are in for a long season ahead.

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