Abu Dhabi: Al Dhafra continued their brilliant form to reach the semi-finals of the League Cup by trouncing Emirates 4-0 in Group B, while Al Ahli also reached the last-four after drawing 1-1 with Al Shabab in the same group.
In the semi-finals, Group B winners Al Dhafra will play Al Jazira, the runners-up in Group A, while Al Ahli will face Sharjah, who topped Pool A. The semi finals matches are expected to be held on March 15, although the date is yet to be confirmed.
In Ras Al Khaimah, Hamad Rafea was the hero for Al Dhafra after scoring in the 41st and 45th minutes.
Makhete Diop added a third in the 55th minute and Abdul Rahim Hussain completed the rout 16 minutes from time.
“We were better [than our opponents] especially in finishing the chances that came our way,” Rafea said after the match. “We were determined to win and reach the semi-finals as winners of the group. Mind you, Emirates played a good game but failed to score,” he said.
“The match was a chance for the coach to try some young players to prepare for the remaining tough weeks of the league. We played a good match but we could not score goals, while the players of Al Dhafra were lucky to score from all their chances,” said Ali Saeed, the Emirates goalkeeper.
In Dubai, Al Shabab playing without a single foreign player in their ranks took the lead when Omar Ali found the bottom of the net in the 48th minute following a goalless first half.
Al Ahli levelled the scores in the last minute of regular time when Ciel scored with a long-range effort.
Also in Dubai, Al Nasr scored a psychological victory over their traditional rivals Al Wasl, beating them 3-2.
Ebrahima Toure, Khalifa Mubarak and Ali Al Ameri scored the goals for Al Nasr, while Saeed Al Kathiri netted a brace for Al Wasl.
