Arabian Gulf League match week 2 roundup
Arabian Gulf League matchweek 2 brought along plenty of action and surprises as none of the six games ended in a draw.
The weekend's biggest shock came at Fujairah Stadium where champions Al Jazira were stunned by last season's relegation survivors Dibba in a 0-1 defeat that sent Al Jazira down to seventh in the league table after two games played.
Matchweek 2 took place over three days; on Thursday home advantage helped Al Dhafra and Al Wasl beat Sharjah and Emirates 2-0 and 3-1 respectively. Friday saw Dibba upset Al Jazira and Al Wahda come away from Dubai with a 2-1 win over Al Nasr. The round of fixtures was concluded on Saturday with two clashes; Al Ain recorded their first win of the season at Hatta 3-0 whle Shabab Al Ahli Dubai came from behind to overcome Ajman 3-1.
Seventeen goals were scored in matchweek 2, a lower tally that the opening weekend's 23 goals. Shabab Al Ahli Dubai's Makhete Diop and Al Dhafra's Ailton Almeida lead the goal-scoring race with four goals each while Al Wahda's Sebastian Tagliabue, Al Wasl's Fabio de Lima and Al Ain's Markus Berg follow with three goals each.
The final game of the weekend saw plenty of action; as Ajman lead until the final 15 minutes, their visitors came from behind to win 3-1. The game saw nine yellow cards brandished and two players were sent-off, one from each side. In total, 21 players were booked in matchweek 2 and none received red cards outside the Ajman vs Shabab Al Ahli Dubai game. Dibba players received the highest number of yellow cards (4) while Al Jazira, Al Wasl and Al Nasr kept their record clean of cards this week.
The Pro League Committee started implementing the Tracking and Heat Map System to monitor players performance starting matchweek 2. The system was implemented in three games; Al Wasl vs Emirates, Al Nasr vs Al Wahda and Ajman vs Shabab Al Ahli Dubai, in collaboration with graphics technology and football data company wTVision.
The system provides accurate data about players speed throughout the match, positioning and heatmaps for their movements and distance covered. Statistics were showcased on live broadcast and published on the PLC social media accounts.
