Dubai: Al Ahli made it a perfect seven with a 4-1 mauling of visiting Al Jazira in the ninth round of the Arabian Gulf League late on Monday.
Runners-up to Guangzhou Evergrande in the AFC Champions League earlier in November, Al Ahli have so far won all seven matches they have played in the AGL this season.
Rodrigo Lima opened the scoring for the home side from the penalty spot in the 22nd minute, while Al Jazira got an equalizer three minutes from the half-time whistle.
The home team scored two goals within nine minutes midway through the second half and then added another in the 78th minute to guarantee full points.
However, despite this untainted record it is Al Ain at the top of the standings with 22 points following seven wins, a draw and a loss, while the Red Knights have maximum 21 points after playing only seven matches. Al Nasr stay third with 18 points while neighbours Al Wasl are fourth with 15 points.
Al Ahli started off well and Esmail Al Hammadi came close in the fourth minute when he rose to head an Abdul Aziz Haikal cross wide of the target. They came calling again in the 19th minute when a cute little chip from Ribeiro saw Lima head over.
The Red Knights finally managed to open the scoring when Fares Juma brought down Moussa Sow and Lima coolly converted from the spot. The score should have been 2-0 in the 33rd minute but Lima lent his shoulder to a Sow header that was on it’s way in.
In the 42nd minute, Khamis Esmail brought the two teams level when he scored a gem of a free kick over the wall.
The home side returned for the second half with renewed ideas and they rightly went clear in the 48th minute when Walid Abbas deftly lobbed a chip from Ribeiro over Al Jazira goalkeeper Khalid Al Senaani.
They put the issue beyond doubt in the 57th minute when Al Hammadi’s stiff drive from well inside the box went to the far left of Al Senaani.
Ribeiro wrapped up the scoring for the night in the 78th minute with a first-time finish from an acute angle off a Majid Hassan pass.