Al Ain canter to a subdued victory

DUBAI // Two goals by Jose Sand, punctuated by Abdulaziz Fayez's late strike, gave a distracted Al Ain a 3-0 victory at Al Nasr last night. With the accident of Yousuf Abdulrahman, the Al Ain goalkeeper, casting a shadow over the game, the first half missed the intensity usually associated with games between the two teams. But Sand broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute and substitute Fayez and Sand again scored late on.

Carlos Tenorio made a promising start with a lob over the advancing Al Ain goalkeeper, Abdullah Sultan, in the fifth minute, which landed on top of the net. But he did little thereafter, slowed by the energy-sapping humidity. At the other end, Rami Yaslam, the Al Ain captain, failed to time his shot after being fed by Sand. Ismail Rabea, the Nasr keeper, then punched away a diving Saif Mohammed header.

The deadlock was eventually broken seven minutes into the second half when a Fawzi Fayez pass found Sand in the clear and the former Argentina international beat Rabea with a low shot. Three minutes later, Omar Abdulrahman had a golden opportunity to double Al Ain's tally, but he delayed his shot and eventually missed the target. Tenorio had an open goal in front of him in the 76th minute and probably the home side's best chance to even the score, but he failed from just two yards out.