League

Mansour Bin Zayed
Spectators: 7500 (Terracing: 5625, Seating: 1725, VIP seats: 150) The field was rather wet after several days of rain when Jean-Baptiste Azem took the kick off in the first half of the match. After 3 played minutes Abu Dhabi United got a freekick which was hit by Hocine Sadaoui. A collision led to New Orleans AFC getting a freekick after 15 minutes play. Ismael Assad hit a great ball. In the 17th minute, Fodil Abbas got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. Jean-Baptiste Azem scored 1-0 in the 18th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Hachemi Belloumi, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. The audience was convinced that Jean-Baptiste Azem's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Hachemi Belloumi was relentless in the 25th minute of the game. Abd el Hamdani took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Jean-Michel Amara, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Hachemi Belloumi stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Jean-Baptiste Azem's shot from short distance in the 29th minute. After a rather tough play, Abu Dhabi United's Mohamed Gourion got a free kick in the 31st minute. Mohamed Gourion charged in rather forcefully in the 33rd minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Mohamed Gourion the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. Abdellah Boniche scored 1-1 in the 35th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Abd el Hamdani, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. 40 minutes into the match, New Orleans AFC's Abdellah Boniche sent off a blazing shot straight on target, a shot that Abd el Hamdani narrowly saved just below the crossbar. With a little luck, New Orleans AFC's Hachemi Belloumi got control of the ball when Mohamed Mezair tried to sneak it across the goal line. After the first half the score was level. The break gave the players a chance to catch their breath, whilst the managers went over the tactics with them again.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Abdellah Boniche to make the kick off. Sofiane Matoub hit a great freekick 54 minutes into the match. When Yasmina Lelouch came up free with the goalie in the 55th minute, the New Orleans AFC fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Yasmina Lelouch couldn't finish the play. The supporters of New Orleans AFC booed when Abu Dhabi United was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 57 match minutes in a wonderful position. Amine Boudjedra didn't get a good kick on the ball. Khair ad-Din Brahimi struck a weak shot in the 61st minute. Hachemi Belloumi didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Abu Dhabi United. Yasmina Lelouch kicked well hit freekick during the 62nd minute of the match. Mohamed Mezair struck a weak shot in the 67th minute. Hachemi Belloumi didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Abu Dhabi United. Abdellah Boniche was extremely unlucky when he, in the 78th minute, took a shot that hit the right post and went out. Jean-Michel Amara sent away a hard shot on goal in the 80th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. After 81 played minutes New Orleans AFC got a freekick which was hit by Yasmina Lelouch. Ismael Assad recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 87th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. If Jean-Baptiste Azem had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 89th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Fodil Abbas fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 94th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Hachemi Belloumi having to interfere. For all the effort they put into the match, the New Orleans AFC players left disappointed. They had fought hard, but couldn't break down the home team's defense. The match ended in a win for Abu Dhabi United.