Over in Saudi Arabia, Cristiano Ronaldo and Anderson Talisca combined to help Al Nassr to a fourth win in all competitions to temporarily close the gap to Al Hilal SFC.

There was also exciting domestic action in Kuwait, Oman, Iraq, Lebanon, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates – so join the-AFC.com as we look at the past week’s movers and shakers from West Asia.
Jordan: Al Hussein reign at halfway stage
The Jordanian Pro League reached its midway point of the season with Al Hussein at the top of the pile, eight points clear of Al Wehdat after they beat Shabab Al Ordon 1-0 with Brazilian forward Fernando Nathan bagging the winner in the eighth minute of stoppage time.

Second placed Wehdat defeated fourth placed Al Ramtha 3-0 through goals from Mohammad Aburiziq and a brace from Mohannad Abu Taha while Al Faisaly also picked up a win, defeating Moghayer Al Sarhan 2-0 to stay two points behind Wehdat.
Kuwait: Silverware opportunity for Kuwait, Kazma
In Super Cup semi-final action, Kuwait SC edged Al Qadsia 1-0 with Yousef Al Sulaiman’s first half strike enough to send his team into the final where they will meet Kazma, in what is a repeat of the 2022 final. Tied 1-1 with Al Arabi after 120 minutes of play, Kazma emerged triumphant in the shoot-out, winning 4-2. The final will be played on Monday.
Saudi Arabia: Al Nasr heat pressure on Al Hilal
A Talisca double helped Al Nassr to an exciting 3-2 win against Al Shabab on Sunday to move within four points of league leaders Al Hilal SFC who will only be in action on Monday against Al Ettifaq.

Ronaldo opened the scoring in the 21st minute but Yannick Carasco leveled at the stroke of half-time. Talisca struck at the start of the second half but once again Shabab equalised, this time through Carlos Junior but Talisca had the last say in the match.

A Roberto Firmino braced Al Ahli to a 4-1 victory over Al Tai while Al Taawoun defeated Al Akhdoud 3-1, both sitting in third and fourth but trailing Al Nassr and Al Hilal by nine and 14 points respectively.
Oman: Al Seeb extend lead
Al Seeb increased their lead at the top of the Oman Professional League over Al Nahda from four points to six in a week where they beat Ibri 1-0 while Nahda were held to a goalless draw by Al Shabab. Both teams are still unbeaten after 11 matches.
Iraq: Al Shorta close in on Air Force Club
Al Shorta took full advantage of Air Force Club’s match against Al Qasim being postponed to narrow the gap with the league leaders to two points after securing a 2-1 win over Al Kahrabaa. However, it was not all plain sailing for Shorta as they needed a 90th minute winner from Mahmoud Al Mawas, his second in the game to seal the victory.

Meanwhile Duhok FC moved up to third following a 2-1 success over Karbala FC, thanks to Ziah Ahmed’s match-winning penalty with Newroz SC just behind in fourth after they put four past Naft Al-Wasat. Al Talaba completed the top five after they picked a 2-0 win over Amanat Baghdad SC.
Lebanon: Nejmeh narrow gap
Nejmeh SC claimed a 1-0 win over Racing Beirut an inch closer to Al Ahed at the top of the standings with the two teams separated only by one point. Hassan Kourani’s volley in the first half secured the points for Nejmeh in a week that saw Ahed playing to a goalless draw with Safa SC. Al Ansar climbed up to third, ahead of Safa, following a 4-0 win over Bourj FC.

In the Relegation Round, bottom-placed Shabab Al Ghazieh gave themselves a fighting chance of staying up after they beat Al Ahli Nabatiya 2-1. Both teams remained in the bottom two positions on seven points but crucially, are only one point behind Al Hikma.
Bahrain: Al Ahli book final berth
In the King’s Cup, eight-time winners Al Ahli will have a chance to get their hands on trophy number nine after they beat Manama 3-1 on Sunday to advance to the final. The other semi-final tie between Muharraq Club and Khalidiya will be played on Monday.
Qatar: Sadd and Wakrah in succession
The Qatar Stars League resumed after a two-month break with a top of the table clash between Al Sadd and Al Wakrah which ended 0-0, ensuring that Sadd maintained their four-point gap on Wakrah.

With Al Gharafa in third being defeated 2-1 by Umm Salai, the biggest benefactor of the week’s results was Al Rayyan as goals from Gabriel Pereira and Roger Guedes earned them a 2-1 win over Al Shamal, pushing them to 25 points and only two behind Gharafa.
UAE: Status quo maintained
It was a good week to ensure the leading pack of the UAE Pro League with the top five all securing wins to that the standings remained unchanged. Leaders Al Wasl beat Emirates FC 2-0 thanks to efforts from Fabio Lima and Jung Seung-hyun.

AFC Champions League™ ۲۰۲۳/۲۴ quarter-finalists Al Ain were 1-0 winners over Baniyas, which left them eight points behind Wasl. Shabab Al Ahli picked up a 3-0 win against Ajman Club, a lone Caio Lucas strike earned Sharjah FC 1-0 victory over Kalba while Al Wahda clinched a 2-1 win against Al Bataeh.