AL AIN (Interstat) — Rami Rabia scored in the 21st minute and Houssine Rahimi El netted the winner in the 70th as Al Ain defeated Tractor SC 2-1 in a global football match on Monday at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium. The home side moved to 2-0 in the competition, while Tractor SC fell to 0-1-1. Al Ain also improved to 6-4-2 across all competitions. Tractor SC is 1-1-3 overall. The victory gave Al Ain a second competition win and kept Tractor SC without a win in the competition.

Rabia gave Al Ain the lead with his 21st-minute goal. Tractor SC responded through Tibor Halilovic, who equalized in the 55th minute. Halilovic finished with the lone goal for Tractor SC. Rahimi El restored Al Ain’s advantage in the 70th minute. Rafael Rodrigues and Yahya Benkhaleq each recorded an assist for Al Ain. Kaku received a yellow card for Al Ain in the 89th minute. Rahimi El scored 15 minutes after Halilovic’s equalizer. Al Ain made substitutions in the 71st minute, when Rodrigues and G. Giakoumakis entered the match. Al Ain later replaced Rahimi El in the 88th minute after his goal.

Al Ain had entered the match after consecutive losses to Shabab Al-Ahli Dubai, falling 3-2 and 2-0 in its previous two matches. The home side stabilized its competition record with the win. Tractor SC arrived unbeaten in its previous four matches overall, a stretch that included a 3-0 home win over Sanat Naft and three straight draws. Tractor SC had drawn with Malavan, Shamal and Esteghlal FC in its previous three overall matches. Tractor SC lost its first competition match. Tractor SC made substitutions in the 74th minute with S. Moharrami and A. Hosseinzadeh, in the 84th minute with M. Daneshgar, in the 85th minute with S. Moghanlou and in the 90+3rd minute with D. Esmaeilifar. Al Ain also brought on V. Lazaro in the 88th minute and replaced Kaku in the 90+2nd minute. Al Ain did not concede again in the final 20 minutes.

The visitors pushed numbers forward late, and the yellow card to Kaku in the 89th minute came during the closing stretch. Al Ain managed the final minutes with substitutions and kept Tractor SC from finding a second goal. Al Ain later replaced Rahimi El in the 88th minute after his goal. Tractor SC had a chance to level again after Halilovic’s goal, but Al Ain regained control after Rahimi El scored. Tractor SC pushed for a second equalizer in the closing stretch. The home side made its lead stand after Rahimi El’s goal, and Tractor SC could not break through. Tractor SC’s record in the competition remains without a win, while Al Ain has two wins from two competition matches.

Al Ain’s overall record now stands at six wins, four losses and two draws. Tractor SC’s overall record is one win, one loss and three draws. The result left Al Ain with a second straight competition win and Tractor SC still without a competition win. Al Ain’s next match in the Arabian Gulf League is against Ajman, followed by a visit to Al Wahda. Tractor SC returns to its domestic schedule after the competition match. Al Ain protected its lead after Rahimi El’s goal and held Tractor SC without a second goal.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a 1-1 final score. Interstat’s ELO system gave Tractor SC a 57.6% probability to win. Al Ain was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 3 went under the over/under line of 2.5.