Fans of the ADNOC Pro League will be eagerly awaiting a thriller as joint leaders Sharjah travel to Dubai to take on Shabab Al Ahli in fourth round action, this weekend.
Scheduled to be held over three days (September 16, 17 and 18), all 14 teams in the fray will be keen to collect full points and thereby either maintain their positions or compensate for past mistakes.
Al Dhafra will host Bani Yas at the Hamdan bin Zayed Stadium as fourth round action gets under way on Thursday evening.
The hosts will be eyeing full points following the decision of the UAE FA Disciplinary Committee to award them three points and a 3-0 result against Emirates last week.
Bani Yas, on the other hand, will be eager for their first win in an attempt to pull themselves clear from the lower end of the standings with just one point to their name.
In late night action the same day, Al Nasr will host Khorfakkan at the Al Maktoum Stadium.
Al Nasr will be looking for their second win and a compensation for their 1-2 away loss to Al Jazira last week.
Currently in eighth place with three points, Al Nasr will need full points if they are to climb up the rankings against an opponent who is yet to notch their first win.
On the second day [Friday], there will be three games with Al Jazira hosting Emirates at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium.
It will be a tough task on hand for the visitors after the Disciplinary Committee decision to award visiting Al Dhafra full points.
Al Jazira should be further comforted as they have a sound 12-3 record against the visitors.
Sixth-placed Ajman will be up for a debut against new entrants Al Orooba at the Rashid bin Saeed Stadium. Having held a strong Shabab Al Ahli to a 1-1 draw last week, Al Orooba will be looking to improve their position at the bottom end of the table, while Ajman with a win and a draw, will also eye a further improvement.
In the day’s last match, table leaders Al Ain will take on Ittihad Kalba at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium. Al Ain has been the team to impress so far with a perfect record of three wins to keep their place at the summit.
Al Ain will once again look towards Togolese striker Kodjo Laba, who has been in sublime form so far.
Last week, Al Ain rode on Laba's eleventh minute strike to collect full points against Bani Yas.
But the club from the Garden City will have to be wary of Ittihad Kalba's Benil Malaba who has proved to be a real threat before goal.
The third day of Round Four will witness further action as Al Wasl play host to visiting Al Wahda in the early match, while Shabab Al Ahli and Sharjah will round off action for the weekend later in the night.
Al Wahda will be smarting from their goalless away draw against Khorfakkan last week, while Al Wasl will want to set the record straight as one of the stronger teams following their heart-breaking 2-3 loss against champions Sharjah.
In the week's final encounter, the youthful Shabab Al Ahli will be eyeing maximum points at home against Sharjah.
The defending champions will be keen to see their red-hot striker from Congo Ben Malango keep up to his form and add to his tally of three goals in as many games so far.
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