Football: Al Sharjah get the better of Al Dhafrah

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Football: Al Sharjah get the better of Al Dhafrah

Sharjah - Meanwhile, Al Dhafrah's search for a first win in the League remained elusive with Al Sharjah consigning them to their fourth loss.

By James Jose

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Published: Thu 20 Oct 2016, 11:18 PM

Last updated: Fri 21 Oct 2016, 1:20 AM

Al Sharjah made it two wins from four games after they got the better of Al Dhafrah 2-1 in the fourth round of the Arabian Gulf League at the Al Sharjah Stadium on Thursday night.
The hosts went ahead through their Venezuelan striker Gelmin Javier Rivas on 29 minutes but Al Dhafrah cancelled that out through the impressive Omar Khrbin, who scored from a penalty, in stoppage time in the first half. Jin-Hyung Song then found the match winner for Al Sharjah on 73 minutes. Al Sharjah had lost their League opener to Al Shabab before blanking newcomers Hatta.
But they then went down to Al Jazira in the previous outing. Meanwhile, Al Dhafrah's search for a first win in the League remained elusive with Al Sharjah consigning them to their fourth loss. The Western Knights stay rooted at the bottom of the table.
After a few failed attempts by either side, Al Sharjah made a dangerous foray from the left through Alhasan Saleh, who then squared it up to an unmarked Rivas, who fired it home. Al Dhafrah made a number of sorties through captain Makhete Diop and Khrbin with both of them denied by goalkeeper Mohamed Yousef. Diop galloped through the middle before sending a left-footed grounder to the far post but Mohamed Yousef had it covered, on 40 minutes.
Three minutes later, Khrbin had the Al Sharjah defence in tatters and came one on one with Mohamed Yousef. But the 22-year-old Syrian shot straight into Yousef. Ibrahim Saeed Al Yaqoubi then flashed the rebound over. Khrbin was at it again and unleashed a fiery shot but Yousef went airborne to his right to push it away for a corner, in stoppage time.
And it was from the resulting corner that Al Dhafrah managed to draw level. Midfielder Jamal Maroof brought down Abdulrahman Yousaf in an off the ball incident and the referee pointed to the spot. And Khrbin kept his calm to coolly slot it home. Both teams made a fist of getting the winner with Khrbin coming close five minutes after the restart.
He managed to lose his marker but his attempt was thwarted by Yousef. Al Sharjah had a chance four minutes later but Rivas' curling left-footer missed the post. A minute later, Diop's shot was blocked by Yousef. Al Sharjah were denied by the woodwork just past the hour after Jamal Maroof's deflection off a Jin-Hyung Song pass hit the cross bar.
And it was the hosts who nudged ahead from a set piece on 73 minutes. Polish international and the club captain Adrian Mierzejewski unfurled a curling left-footed freekick which the goalkeeper Abdulla Sultan Alnasri managed to block.
But Jin-Hyung Song, who had made the charge by then, slotted it home, but it may have been off-side.
Al Sharjah 2
(Goals: Gelmin Javier Rivas 29, Jin-Hyung Song 73. Yellow cards: Adrian Mierzejewski 44, Muhain Khalifa 60)
Al Dhafrah 1
(Goal: Omar Khrbin 47. Yellow card: Makhete Diop 39)
james@khaleejtimes.com


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