Al Dhafrah defeat Al Ahli in thriller

Abu Dhabi Reigning champions Al Ahli's campaign took another nose-dive when they lost to Al Dhafrah 5-4 on Sunday in the last week of the first round of the UAE Football League (UFL). With this loss, they are now in the seventh place.

Al Dhafrah's first-ever victory over Al Ahli came in a dramatic fashion. They took the lead twice before the defending champions levelled the score on both occasions. However, Tawfik Abdul Razzak had the last laugh with his injury-time strike that secured the three points for Al Dhafrah. Al Dhafrah have increased their tally to 16 points leaving Al Ahli with 14, both from 11 matches each.

Hamad Abdul Rahman Al Housani put Al Dhafrah in the lead in the 20th minute and defender Khairy Khalfan added the second six minutes later.

Bare reduced the margin from the penalty spot in the 37th minute and Ahmad Khalil levelled the score two minutes into injury time.

Nigerian Abas Muiywa Lawal then scored twice to put Al Dhafrah 4-2 ahead. Khalil then scored in the 86th minute and Bare followed with the equaliser a minute later. However, Tawfik scored the winning goal in the dying minutes.