Al Ahli 0 Nasaf Qarshi 0
Man of the match Eldorbek Suyunov (Nasaf)
DUBAI // The singing and the drums never stopped, nor did the words of encouragement blaring out from the loudspeakers.
The cheerleader’s voice had turned hoarse shouting for his “Habibi Ahlawi” and screaming “Inshallah goal” anytime Luis Jimenez took a corner or Everton Ribeiro stood over a free kick. In the end, though, it was much ado about nothing.
Al Ahli, flying the country’s flag in the Asian Champions League as champions of the Arabian Gulf League, looked wondrously inept as they attempted to breach Nasaf’s spirited defence in 90 insipid minutes of football. The stalemate stretched their winless streak at home in the Champions League to five matches.
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Overall, this was Ahli’s seventh draw in 10 Champions League matches, a stretch during which they have posted only one win, and it keeps them at the bottom of Group D with two points from three matches.
For Cosmin Olaroiu, the Ahli coach who has won the past three UAE league championships, last night’s performance was continuation of the mediocrity that has crept into his team.
“We controlled the game and we tried different things, but in the end it was the same problem – we are creating chances but we are not scoring goals,” Olaroiu said.
“It has been the same problem since the beginning of the season, but the bigger problem is we don’t have options.
“For the first time, we have only one striker for what, maybe 30 matches? What can we do? We have tried different things, but without any result.”
In their past 10 matches across the Arabian Gulf League and the continental championship, Olaroiu’s men have managed just two wins – over Sharjah and Fujairah. In six of these matches, they have failed to score.
Last night, however, they had plenty of chances, but were denied by an outstanding performance from Nasaf goalkeeper Eldorbek Suyunov. In the 28th minute, he pulled off a brilliant save to deny Ahli’s best player on the night Ismail Al Hammadi.
With the visitors playing well defensively, allowing the hosts little space in behind, Abdulaziz Sanqour tried his luck from long distance on 57 minutes. The Ahli defender did not miss the target by much, but, again failed to trouble the opposition net.
Four minutes later, Ahmed Khalil created space for an attempt from the edge of the box, but Suyunov did well to beat his scorching volley away.
The Nasaf goalkeeper dived low to his left to keep out Jimenez’s back flick from close range moments later as Ahli were left with that gut feeling that tonight was not going to be there night.
But forward they marched in search of a goal. In the 71st minute, Khalil tried to break the deadlock with a spectacular overhead kick, but his effort was high and summed up how Ahli had tried but failed to find the target.
The Nasaf coach Ruziqul Berdiev was pleased with the defensive performance.
“As we know, today we had a very tough game,” he said.
“We had to play defensively because Ahli are a very strong team, so we are satisfied with the result because we took a point playing at the home of a really strong team.”
arizvi@thenational.ae
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch, Matt Renshaw, Brendan Doggett, Michael Neser, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine (captain), Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Jon Holland, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Peter Siddle
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The biog
Most memorable achievement: Leading my first city-wide charity campaign in Toronto holds a special place in my heart. It was for Amnesty International’s Stop Violence Against Women program and showed me the power of how communities can come together in the smallest ways to have such wide impact.
Favourite film: Childhood favourite would be Disney’s Jungle Book and classic favourite Gone With The Wind.
Favourite book: To Kill A Mockingbird for a timeless story on justice and courage and Harry Potters for my love of all things magical.
Favourite quote: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” — Winston Churchill
Favourite food: Dim sum
Favourite place to travel to: Anywhere with natural beauty, wildlife and awe-inspiring sunsets.
Teachers' pay - what you need to know
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Steve Smith (capt), David Warner, Cameron Bancroft, Jackson Bird, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine, Chadd Sayers, Mitchell Starc.
How to vote in the UAE
1) Download your ballot https://www.fvap.gov/
2) Take it to the US Embassy
3) Deadline is October 15
4) The embassy will ensure all ballots reach the US in time for the November 3 poll
How to help or find other cats to adopt
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