Shabab Al-Ahli Dubai made light work of Al-Khalij with a 5-1 victory in the Pro-League's opening round on Friday. The visitors showed no mercy from the first whistle, with goals coming at regular intervals throughout the match. To be fair, the result reflected the gulf in quality between two sides sitting at opposite ends of the table.
A. Boa Morte opened the scoring in the 25th minute, and the visitors never looked back. S. Ezatolahi doubled the lead before half-time with a well-taken goal in the 57th minute. And here's the thing — Ezatolahi then converted a penalty in the 79th minute, adding a second of the evening. Yuri Cesar made it four in the 84th minute before S. Azmoun struck in the 87th.
Rikelme added a sixth-minute consolation goal in the 90+2nd minute, but by then the match was beyond any form of contest. Al-Khalij's efforts were hampered early on when Mateusao picked up a yellow card in the 19th minute. The hosts managed just two shots on target all match, compared to nine for the visitors.
The statistics told the same story. Shabab Dubai controlled 67 per cent of possession and created 3.83 expected goals, while Al-Khalij managed only 0.74. The visitors registered 23 key passes against just five for the hosts, and their six blocked shots showed how often they threatened. Al-Khalij's goalkeeper was forced into four saves, while his counterpart made just one.
Al-Khalij now find themselves rooted to 10th place with three points from four games, having won just once and lost three times. Shabab Dubai sit third with nine points from their four outings, having suffered only a single defeat. The result leaves the hosts needing to regroup quickly if they want to avoid trouble.