Title holders Shabab Al Ahli dropped their first points of the season after being held to a goalless draw by Al Wahda in an intense encounter at Al Nahyan Stadium on matchweek two of the ADNOC Pro League.
Both sides head into the international break level on four points, with a win and a draw from their opening two matches, leaving early momentum in the title race finely balanced.
Al Wahda came close to striking first in the 24th minute when defender Lucas Pimenta capitalised on a rare mistake from Shabab Al Ahli’s goalkeeper, planting a back header into the net — only for the effort to be disallowed due to an offside.
The hosts maintained their pressure throughout the first half, pressing high up the pitch.
Luciano Rivera nearly broke through with a low drive from inside the box, but Bogdan Planic produced a last-ditch tackle to deny him 13 minutes before the break.
The second half opened at a furious pace, with the champions creating back-to-back chances within a single minute.
Nemanja Maksimović saw his powerful header expertly saved by goalkeeper Zayed Ahmed, who then immediately denied Guilherme Da Silva’s follow-up effort with another stunning stop.
The clearest opportunity of the match arrived on 59 minutes when Omar Khribin latched onto a rebound from Dusan Tadic’s strike, only to see his effort cannon back off the crossbar, leaving the home crowd stunned.
Drama continued late in the contest as Renan Victor Da Silva was shown a straight red card in the 83rd minute for a reckless challenge on Facundo Daniel, reducing Shabab Al Ahli to ten men.
Deep into stoppage time, Al Wahda were also forced down to ten after Lucas Pimenta received his marching orders for a heavy tackle on Guilherme Da Silva.
Both sides pushed until the final whistle in search of a breakthrough, but resolute defending and missed opportunities ensured the points were shared in Abu Dhabi.
The result means Al Wahda and Shabab Al Ahli remain side by side in the table, each with four points from two games, as the ADNOC Pro League heads into the international break.
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