No stopping Vucinic and Al Jazira, Al Wahda stay close and Al Dhafra gain

Mirko Vucinic has 18 goals at this stage. Mostafa Reda / Al Ittihad

Al Jazira ensured they retained top spot in the Arabian Gulf League on Wednesday, although the Abu Dhabi club had to come from a goal down to defeat Ajman 3-1.

The league leaders, who resumed the campaign ahead of second-placed Al Ain because they hold a superior head-to-head record, once again relied on Mirko Vucinic to fire them to the points.

Ajman had taken a surprise lead just before half-time at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium through a tap-in from debutant Rafael Crivellaro, the recent signing from Brazil.

However, Vucinic struck five minutes after the break to restore parity, and moments later notched his 18th league goal of his inaugural season in UAE football to give the hosts the advantage.

The strike of the night came from Manuel Lanzini, though, when the Argentine curled home direct from a corner on 71 minutes to make safe the match for Jazira.

Eric Gerets’s side still sit at the summit, having gleaned 30 points from 14 rounds played.

Elsewhere, Al Wahda maintained their improbable push for the title with a 1-0 victory at bottom club Kalba.

Jose Peseiro’s men led for most of the encounter, when Sebastian Tagliabue converted a Damian Diaz cross on seven minutes.

With the win, Wahda moved temporarily into second, yet by the close of the night’s play had slipped back one place. Kalba, meanwhile, are rooted to the base of the table, eight points from safety.

Fujairah boosted their chances of survival with a 2-1 triumph at Emirates, securing an opening victory for new coach Ivan Hasek.

Hassan Maatouk scored a goal either side of Rodrigo Souza’s 20-minute equaliser.

There was more agony for Emirates late on, when Luiz Henrique was shown a straight red card in a melee prompted by the official ruling out a second equaliser for the hosts. Fujairah leapfrogged their opponents into 10th.

Al Dhafra sit one place above the east coast club following a 3-1 victory against eighth-placed Al Wasl, while Al Nasr and Baniyas played out a goalless draw at Al Maktoum Stadium. The pair rank sixth and seven, respectively.

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