Al Shabab cruised to a 3-1 home win over Emirates in Round 24 of the Arabian Gulf League, thanks to a double from Henrique Luvannor and a headed Rashid Hassan goal, with all scoring taking place in the second half.
The result moves Al Shabab on to 36 points, while Emirates remain on 26 but could have their safety in the top flight confirmed if Fujairah lost at Al Jazira on Sunday.
With little by way of attacking chances in the first half, Emirates again came closest to a threat in stoppage time as Waleed Ambar fired the ball across the face of goal from the byline but there was noone there to tap home.
The match soon came to life after the break. A move started and finished by Luvannor saw the Moldovan striker set Hassan away down the left.
The winger returned the favour with a perfect cross for Luvannor to score with an overhead bicycle kick.
By the 55th minute, Shabab had doubled their lead as a pass from midfield by Carlos Villanueva put winger Hassan through to loop a header over the onrushing Ali Saqr.
Emirates pulled a goal back in the 71st minute after some shambolic defending by Al Shabab was punished by Brett Holman. The Australian midfielder intercepted a failed back-pass from Essa Mohammed and finished well.
But, in the 82nd minute, Luvannor put Al Shabab 3-1 ahead with a bullet header from Carlos Villanueva’s curling set piece delivery.
In the later match, Al Wahda moved up to third place in the table with a convincing 3-0 win over Al Wasl.
Hamdan Al Kamali struck early on, before Sebastian Tagliabue and Jorge Valdivia put some gloss on the scoreline.
The Abu Dhabi club will be hoping league leaders Al Ahli can help them in their pursuit of third place today as they take on Al Nasr, who are two points behind Wahda.
Dibba can overtake Al Dhafra with a win at Fujairah Stadium, while Baniyas will want to get back to winning ways, following their 5-2 loss at Al Nasr, when they take on Sharjah.
* Agencies
sports@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter @NatSportUAE
Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/TheNationalSport
Racecard
7pm: Abu Dhabi - Conditions (PA) Dh 80,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
7.30pm: Dubai - Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,400m
8pm: Sharjah - Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,600m
8.30pm: Ajman - Handicap (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 2,200m
9pm: Umm Al Quwain - The Entisar - Listed (TB) Dh132,500 (D) 2,000m
9.30pm: Ras Al Khaimah - Rated Conditions (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,600m
10pm: Fujairah - Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,200m
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Drishyam 2
Directed by: Jeethu Joseph
Starring: Mohanlal, Meena, Ansiba, Murali Gopy
Rating: 4 stars
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
