Manuel Jimenez returns to Al Wahda in style with resounding win over Al Nasr

Elsewhere in the Adnoc Pro League, Fabio de Lima fires hat-trick for Al Wasl in 4-0 drubbing of Al Dhafra

Al Wahda’s Allan Marques, left, tussles for possession with Al Nasr’s Dembo Darboe during the Adnoc Pro League match at Al Nahyan Stadium. Photo: PLC

Manuel Jimenez made an immediate impact in his first game in charge at Al Wahda with a resounding 4-0 win over Al Nasr in the Adnoc Pro League on Saturday.

Taking charge of his first match since replacing Carlos Carvalhal, Jimenez, who has returned to the Wahda dugout for a second spell, saw his team take the lead early in the second half when Joao Pedro worked his way inside the area before unleashing a fine finish from an Ismail Matar assist.

Pedro then paved the way for Tahnoon Al Zaabi to double the hosts' lead at Al Nahyan Stadium with an excellent cross three minutes later.

Ruben Filipe added the third from inside the area off a low cross from Ahmed Refaat, before Luis Miguel rounded off the victory with an injury-time strike to complete Wahda's second win in five games.

Jimenez's return to Wahda is similar to his first spell in charge, when the Spaniard was appointed following the dismissal of Maurice Steijn after four games in October 2019.

The result makes it back-to-back 4-0 wins for Wahda, who sit fifth in the Pro League table, while successive defeats means new midfielder Adel Taarabt is yet to experience victory with Nasr.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Al Wasl crushed Al Dhafra 4-0 and Khor Fakkan outclassed promoted Al Bataeh 3-0.

Fabio de Lima fired a hat-trick after Soufiane Bouftin opened the scoring for Wasl at the Zabeel Stadium.

Bouftin headed a corner from Ali Saleh for a 20th-minute lead, before De Lima curled in a free kick to double Wasl's lead three minutes before halftime.

The Brazilian was on target again two minutes after the break and completed the hat-trick when he headed the ball into the back of the net from another Saleh corner.

Khor Fakkan produced a strong second-half performance to score three times and register their first win in the league at the Saqr bin Mohammed Al Qasimi Stadium.

Aylton Filipe met Ramon Lopes De Freitas's cross with a powerful header inside the six-yard box in the 65th minute, and the provider turned the scorer before Antonio Junior sealed the game.