Al Shabab salvaged a point from their derby clash with their Dubai neighbours and league champions Al Ahli to hold on to their second spot in the standings with a 1-1 draw at the Maktoum bin Rashid Stadium Sunday night.
Titled the “Deira Derby” between two clubs that share the same street address, the match was expected to be a thriller despite Ahli having already wrapped up the Arabian Gulf League title a fortnight ago.
A second half penalty from Shabab’s Carlos Villanueva cancelled Ahmed Khalil’s early goal, and the hosts are now one point clear of third-placed Al Wahda, who beat Al Dhafra 3-1, with two weeks of play remaining.
“There isn’t a coach who would be satisfied with second place, everyone wants to be top, so you can imagine if we finish in third… it would be disappointing but we’ll do our best,” said Shabab coach Marcos Paqueta.
“We still have two more games and we’ll stay focused and do our best to take six points and hold on to second place.”
Khalil took everyone by surprise when he scored in the third minute. The UAE international combined with Walid Abbas for a smooth one-two down the left before dribbling confidently into the box, his shot finding the far corner of the net.
Four minutes later, Ciel showcased his own impressive skills when he danced around the Shabab defence before unleashing a bullet that bounced off the ground and forced a shaky block from ‘keeper Ismail Juma. Grafite missed the follow inches away from the goal line.
Grafite again could have doubled the lead for the visitors in the 16th minute as he sprinted down the right side, beating the defence to come one-on-one with Juma but he hesitantly chose to pass rather than shoot, and the ball was cleared instead.
The hosts’ first chance came in the 18th minute when Dawood Ali crossed over to Villanueva, who was on target but Ahli ‘keeper Saif Yousif was there for the block.
Shabab started strong in the second half and Adeilson earned them a penalty seven minutes in when he was challenged by Ahli’s Thamer Mohammed in the area, and Villanueva brilliantly scored the equaliser from the spot with a left-footed beauty that ripped through the upper right corner of the net.
The hosts upped their possession percentage but were unable to complete a comeback, settling for a draw.
Despite the dip in form in the second half, assistant coach Catalin Raducan insists a draw with Shabab is a satisfying result.
“I think the result is a fair result,” said Raducan. “We played against the second team in their home and it’s 1-1, I think in this moment there was nothing more we could have done. We played 14 games in 40 days, it’s not an excuse, it’s a fact. In this moment to draw with Shabab in my opinion is a good result.”
