Tomorrow, the 17th round of the UAE Pro League kicks off, spanning three days. Amidst the absence of seven players from five clubs due to suspensions, including three players from Al Ain in a single instance, five players are set to return to their teams after serving their bans. Concurrently, seven players face the risk of missing the 18th round if they receive a yellow card in the current round's matches. According to statistics compiled by 'Emirates Today' based on previous rounds, Al Ain will be without the services of the international pair, Paraguayan Alejandro Gacho and Egyptian Rami Rabeiya. The players received a straight red card in the match against Al Nassr, so they will miss the match against Bani Yas in the current round and against Horfakan in the next. Additionally, 'The Leader' will be without Portuguese Rafael Ferreira due to accumulated cautions. He received his third yellow card in the match against Al Jazira and will miss the game against Al Wahda. Television footage from the Al Ain vs. Al Nassr match showed the player deliberately getting a warning at the behest of head coach Serbian Vladimir Ivic in the 32nd minute, by loudly protesting the decision of Brazilian referee Wilton Sampaio. Al Jazira will face the 'Abu Dhabi Derby' against their neighbor Al Wahda in the absence of Elias Lakrami. He received a straight red card in the team's match against Al Qadsiah and will miss the match against Al Nassr in the current round, as well as the match against Sharjah in the next. Al Wahda will be without defender Lucas Pimenta in the derby, who received a straight red card in the match against Al United in the quarter-finals of the President's Cup. The suspension was carried over to two league matches as the team was eliminated from the tournament. He missed the match against Al Batayha in the previous round and will miss the match against Al Jazira in the current one. Sharjah will face their neighbor Ajman in the absence of midfielder Igor Cornado. He received a straight red card in the match against Shabab Al Ahli in the 15th round and will miss the current and next rounds. Horfakan will be without Kaiky Campos due to accumulated yellow cards. He received his first warning in the match against Ajman in the first leg, the second against Al Dhafra in the 15th round, and the third against Ajman in the past 16th round. Several players, including Al Dhafra's Mohamed Khaloui, Al Qadsiah's Seyku Baba, Horfakan's Tarik Tissoudali, Al Nassr's Esaam Faez, Al Batayha's Adilson Alberto, and Al Jazira's duo Jay Dee and Buno de Oliveira, are at risk of suspension for the 18th round if they receive a yellow card in the current round's matches. Conversely, Al Wahda will be strengthened by the return of the duo Facundo Daniel and Favour Ogbo in their upcoming match against Al Jazira. They served their suspensions after being sent off in the match against Al Ain in the 'Abu Dhabi Derby', which deprived them of playing against Dibba and Al Batayha, respectively. Dibba will regain the services of defenders Iago Azevedo and Simon Cabral in the match against Al Qadsiah. They served their suspensions by missing the matches against Al Wahda and Bani Yas. Sharjah captain Shahin Abdelrahman will return to the heart of the defense after missing the match against Shabab Al Ahli due to accumulated cautions. He received his first yellow against Al Ain in the 11th round, the second against Al Qadsiah in the 13th, and the third during the match against Al Dhafra in the 14th round.
