Al Ahli face Al Nasr in Dubai derby

Dubai - Positive results back-to-back against Nasr and Sharjah would then set Ahli up nicely for arguably the most important fixture in the club's history honing in on the horizon.

 Al Ahli will want to build up a head of steam on home soil here ahead of the crunch second leg of their Asian Champions League (ACL) semifinal against Al Hilal later this month.
The Red Knights face holders Al Nasr in the Arabian Gulf Cup (AGC) at Rashid Stadium tonight (Saturday, Kick-off: 8pm) prior to a playing host to Sharjah in the Arabian Gulf League (AGL) next Thursday (Kick-off: 5:05pm).
That latter encounter has been brought forward by two days to allow Cosmin Olaroiu's men more preparation time for the Saudis' visit, with the last-four tussle delicately balanced at 1-1 right now.
Positive results back-to-back against Nasr and Sharjah would then set Ahli up nicely for arguably the most important fixture in the club's history honing in on the horizon. It would help bolster belief and morale at an important time, especially given that many of Ahli's senior Emirati players will still be smarting from the UAE's 2-1 loss away to Saudi Arabia in World Cup qualifying on Thursday night.
However, Ahli will have to make do without those players this evening as they try and plot a path past Ivan Jovanovic's squad, which invariably is not quite as hamstrung by a plethora of international call-ups as Ahli's personnel.
That said, both teams should still have a fair smattering of foreign and peripheral first-team players at their disposal respectively and there's enough at stake to assume it should be a good, sporting spectacle. It is, after all, another Dubai derby and there's little to choose between the two teams in the Group A standings and they both go in search of a much-prized spot in the semifinals of this domestic competition.
Ahli and Nasr are tied towards the top of the table on four points apiece after two games, with Emirates Club - who are not in action in this third round of AGC fixtures - a point further back behind them.