Al Ain avenged their recent loss to Khorfakkan in the Arabian Gulf Cup with a 2-0 win at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium on Saturday night in the opening matchweek of the Arabian Gulf League held under the slogan “we commit to win”.
Al Ain missed a chance to open the scoring early in the game, when Salem Abdullah launched a counterattack in the fifth minute, before crossing the ball inside the box to find Mohamed Abdulrahman, but the latter’s effort went wide.
In the 27th minute, Rayan Yaslam put the Boss 1-0 up. Abdulrahman's pass found Yaslam inside the box, and the latter unleashed a powerful strike that settled into the back of the net.
After consulting the VAR, Khorfakkan were awarded a penalty for a foul on Al Ain keeper Khalid Eisa. The guests, however, failed to level the scoreline as Eisa saved Raphael Guimarães' effort.
Fifteen minutes after the restart, Al Ain missed a chance to double their lead, as the ball fell to Ahmed Barman inside the box, but he missed the target.
The Boss continued to pile up the pressure and missed another goalscoring chance four minutes later. The Khorfakkan keeper saved a freekick from Ryan Yaslam, and the ball rebounded in the box but Al Ain players failed to convert it in the back of the net.
With 20 minutes to go, Al Ain were awarded a penalty kick, but Wilson Eduardo failed to score from the spot for the second game in a row, sending the ball wide.
In the dying moments of the game, Wislon Eduardo finally got his name on the scoresheet with a powerful left-footed strike off Salem Abdullah’s cross.
Al Ain will next face Shabab Al Ahli, while Khorfakkan will host Al Nasr.
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