Al Ain stretched their lead at the top of the Arabian Gulf League thanks to a first-half strike from talisman Asomoah Gyan after Al Ahli were reduced to 10 men. 

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This fixture was played at a frantic tempo from the off as both teams competed for every ball and a little more. This changed in the 39th minute when defender Salmeen Khamis was shown a second yellow card for a late challenge on goalkeeper Khalid Essa. This came three minutes after his initial booking after an earlier confrontation with the Al Ain stopper.

This proved to be a gamechanger because the match was even up until then with both teams coming close to breaking the deadlock. As the half-time whistle approached Gyan showed his poachers instinct as he latched on to a delicate chipped through ball from Omar Abdulrahman to round the 'keeper and score. 

This proved decisive as it allowed Al Ain to control possession in the second-half although Khalid Essa was called into action on a few occasions. '

The Boss are now seven points clear at the top of the AGL after this massive result. Second-placed Al Jazira have a game in hand and face Al Wahda tomorrow in a match they now cannot afford to lose.