Mohammed Ahmed believes Al Ain are firmly in the title race after a 2-1 win over Sharjah moved them to within nine points of the reigning Arabian Gulf League champions.
Al Ain rallied from a goal down to inflict Sharjah’s second defeat in the league at the Sharjah Stadium on Saturday.
The result took Al Ain’s tally to 27 points from 16 games and up to fourth spot, nine behind the runaway leaders Sharjah.
“We still have a lot of matches left to play and it is still a wide open race for the league title,” Ahmed said.
“This result is a massive confidence booster. We have a lot of catching up to do but to win against Sharjah, who has been in good form, was certainly a big hurdle to clear.”
Sharjah broke the deadlock through Caio Lucas on 10 minutes. The Brazilian midfielder picked up a through pass off a counterattack to fire a left-footed shot into the bottom corner.
Igor Coronado missed an opportunity to double Sharjah’s lead before the half-hour mark, as his effort lacked accuracy and landed inches wide.
Sharjah keeper Darwish Mohamed was called into action as he pulled off a fine save to deny Khalid Al Blooshi’s strike from outside the box before Yahia Nader netted the equaliser in added time.
The Emirati midfielder fired a powerful long-range shot that hit the woodwork before settling into the back of the net.
Kodjo Laba put the visitors ahead on 70 minutes. Mohamed saved Shoya Nakajima’s effort but for the Togolese forward was on hand to tap home the rebound.
Elsewhere, Baniyas beat Khorfakkan 2-1 away to consolidate third spot four points behind Sharjah.
Goals from Sultan Al Shamsi and Joao Pedro gave Baniyas in front at the interval before Raphael Guimaraes reduced the deficit on 57 minutes.
Al Wahda secured a 2-2 draw away to Shabab Al Ahli while bottom club Hatta thrashed Ajman 3-0 to record their first win in the AGL though they remain four points from safety.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
match info
Maratha Arabians 138-2
C Lynn 91*, A Lyth 20, B Laughlin 1-15
Team Abu Dhabi 114-3
L Wright 40*, L Malinga 0-13, M McClenaghan 1-17
Maratha Arabians won by 24 runs
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
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'Cheb%20Khaled'
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
RESULTS FOR STAGE 4
Stage 4 Dubai to Hatta, 197 km, Road race.
Overall leader Primoz Roglic SLO (Team Jumbo - Visma)
Stage winners: 1. Caleb Ewan AUS (Lotto - Soudal) 2. Matteo Moschetti ITA (Trek - Segafredo) 3. Primoz Roglic SLO (Team Jumbo - Visma)
Points Classification
1. Marcel Kittel (Germany / Quick-Step) 63
2. Arnaud Demare (France / FDJ) 38
3. Andre Greipel (Germany / Lotto) 25
4. Sonny Colbrelli (Italy / Bahrain) 24
5. Mark Cavendish (Britain / Dimension Data) 22
6. Taylor Phinney (U.S. / Cannondale) 21
7. Geraint Thomas (Britain / Team Sky) 20
8. Thomas Boudat (France / Direct Energie) 20
9. Stefan Kueng (Switzerland / BMC Racing) 17
10. Michael Matthews (Australia / Sunweb) 17
The Breadwinner
Director: Nora Twomey
Starring: Saara Chaudry, Soma Chhaya, Laara Sadiq
Three stars
Results
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Dirt) 1,600m, Winner: Panadol, Mickael Barzalona (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
6.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m, Winner: Mayehaab, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh85,000 (D) 1,600m, Winner: Monoski, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh102,500 (T) 1,800m, Winner: Eastern World, Royston Ffrench, Charlie Appleby
7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (D) 1,200m, Winner: Madkal, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
8.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 1,200m, Winner: Taneen, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi
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Arabian Gulf Cup FINAL
Al Nasr 2
(Negredo 1, Tozo 50)
Shabab Al Ahli 1
(Jaber 13)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
