Al Ain and Al Wasl share spoils in 1-1 draw

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

Ronaldo Mendes' was on target goal as Al Wasl rallied to hold Al Ain for a 1-1 draw at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in matchweek 19 of the Arabian Gulf League (AGL) on Saturday.

After a goalless first half, Al Ain broke the deadlock 10 minutes only after the restart. Caio Canedo found Laba Kodjo's header and tapped the ball 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.

Al Ain failed to earn a win for the second game in a row as they sit sixth on 31 points, two above Al Wasl who sit temporarily in seventh place.

Meanwhile, second-half goals helped Bani Yas earn a 2-0 victory away from home over Ittihad Kalba in another match 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 a rough challenge.

The guests capitalized 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 Ittihad Kalba's net.

Bani Yas raised their tally to 39 points and moved temporarily to second place above Sharjah who still have a game in hand.