Abu Dhabi, UAE – Al Ain began their UAE Pro League title defense with a thrilling 4-2 victory over Bani Yas. The match took place on Sunday evening at Saqr Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi Stadium, as part of the first round of the 2026-2027 season.
Bani Yas made a strong start, surprising their visitors with two goals in the first half, both scored by Youssoufou Nketiah. He opened the scoring in the 15th minute, capitalizing on a defensive error, before adding a second goal in the 42nd minute.
Before the end of the first half, Al Ain managed to reduce the deficit after being awarded a penalty. Soufiane Rahimi converted it in the second minute of stoppage time, giving his team a chance to get back into the game.
Al Ain had scored a goal in the 32nd minute through Giacomakis, but the referee disallowed it due to a foul on his teammate Abdul Karim Traoré.
At the start of the second half, Al Ain increased their attacking pressure in search of an equalizer. Al-Hussain Rahimi almost leveled the score with a header in the 62nd minute, but the goal was disallowed for a foul on Bani Yas player Suhail Al-Noubi.
The defending champions continued to press until Al-Hussain Rahimi finally equalized in the 81st minute, converting a perfectly placed cross into the Bani Yas net. The match thus returned to square one, with the score at 2-2.
In the final minutes, Al Ain continued their attacking dominance and completed the comeback. Hussein Rahimi scored his second and his team’s third goal in the seventh minute of stoppage time, before Kaku capped off the scoring with a fourth goal in the tenth minute of added time.
الجولة الافتتاحية في موسم 2026-27 أكثر جولة افتتاحية تسجيلاً في تاريخ دوري المحترفين (33 هدفاً) 🔝
شاهد أهداف المباراة المثيرة حتى الثواني الأخيرة بريمونتادا عيناوية ضد بني ياس بنتيجة 4-2 في ختام الجولة الأولى من دورينا ⚽📽️#دوري_أدنوك_للمحترفين | #بني_ياس_العين pic.twitter.com/yfwtkmoNRb
— ADSportsTV (@ADSportsTV) August 16, 2026With this victory, Al Ain, the reigning ADNOC Pro League champions, secured their first three points of the new season. Meanwhile, Bani Yas left the opening round without any points.
