Attention turns to the eighth round of the ADNOC Pro League, starting tomorrow, which will be held over three days and features fiery matchups. The highlight is the 'Abu Dhabi Derby' between league leaders Al Ain and their guests, Al Jazira. Meanwhile, Al Wahda (the second-place team) will face a risky encounter away at Dibba. 'Emirates Today' reviews the key statistics and notable numbers before the round begins.
Al Ahli has kept a clean sheet in their last three away matches in the ADNOC Pro League. If they manage to keep a clean sheet against Khorfakkan in the eighth round, they will equal their record of four consecutive clean sheets, set between January and March 2017.
Before their match against Al Zafra in the eighth round, Al Nasr has lost five of their last nine home matches in the ADNOC Pro League. This is the same number of losses they suffered in 28 home matches prior to that in the competition (17 wins, six draws, five losses).
Khorfakkan is one of six teams against whom Al Ahli has never lost in the Pro League, along with Kalba, Hatta, Al Oruba, Al Batay, and Dibba Hisn. In 12 encounters with Khorfakkan, Al Ahli has won 10 and drawn two.
Al Ain's Togolese striker, Laba Kodjo, has scored 14 goals against Al Jazira in the Pro League, including 13 of Al Ain's last 20 goals against 'The Pride of Abu Dhabi'. If he scores in the current round against Al Jazira, he will tie the record for most goals in the head-to-head, which he currently shares with Ali Mabkhout (14 goals each).
Al Wasl's player, Fabio Lima, has been involved in 14 goals in 16 matches against Ajman in the Pro League (nine goals and five assists). For comparison, 'The Volcano's striker, Walid Azaro, has been involved in five goals in seven matches against Al Wasl (three goals and two assists).
Al Wahda is undefeated in their last 27 matches across all competitions (17 wins, 10 draws). They have also not lost to Dibba in 12 Pro League encounters, winning 10 and drawing two. Furthermore, 'The Falcons' have not lost in their last 10 away matches in the ADNOC Pro League (seven wins, three draws).
There has been a 0-0 draw in Khorfakkan's last 40 home matches in the ADNOC Pro League. These matches have seen 138 goals scored, at an average of 3.5 per match (65 scored by Khorfakkan, 73 conceded), which raises the stakes for their upcoming match against Al Ahli.
Despite goalkeeper Khaled Eisa's career starting with Al Jazira before moving to 'The Leader', he has conceded the most goals against them in the Pro League, with 42 goals.
Al Sharjah has scored 63 goals against their current round opponent, Bani Yas, in the Pro League. This is the highest number of goals 'The King' has scored against any single team. For context, they have scored 50 against Ajman, 45 against Al Nasr, 44 against Al Wasl, and 39 against Al Ain.
