Newly promoted Al Dhafra have recruited two more foreign internationals as they look to build on their solid start in the Pro League.
The Omani Fawzi Basheer has been signed from Baniyas and Jordan's Anas Bani Yaseen, who will fill the Asian player slot, has moved from Al Wahda on a one-year loan deal.
Basheer comes in for Pinga, the Brazilian midfielder, who has not started a game this season.
"Fawzi has been playing in the Pro League for three seasons and brings in a lot of experience," a club spokesman said. "We feel he can fit into the side straightaway."
Basheer's contract at Baniyas was terminated on the insistence of Josef Chovanec, the new coach, just days before the team was to depart for a pre-season training camp in Portugal in August.
His place was taken by Nick Carle, the Australian midfielder, a move that upset the Omani.
"If the coach wasn't satisfied with my performance he should have spoken to me and also told the management to take a decision earlier, instead of leaving me out in the cold at the last moment," Basheer said at that time.
While both Basheer and Bani Yaseen were able to fill in the Asian player, the club spokesman said time constraints had meant they had not been able to look farther afield for foreign players.
"Basheer is no stranger in the UAE's top-flight competition and Bani Yaseen has had a good feel of it since his arrival at Wahda," he said. "We were running out of time and we decided to take them on-board as they were the two players we had some knowledge about and the two players who were available."
Basheer, 28, has 98 international caps for his country and plied his trade in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait before arriving at Baniyas in 2009.
Basheer played a key role in helping Baniyas finish runners-up behind Al Jazira in the league in 2011 and taking them to the President's Cup final last season.
Bani Yaseen became the first Jordanian to move to the Pro League when the 40-cap international defender signed a two-year deal with Wahda in the summer.
However, he beomes the second foreign signing to be replaced by the Abu Dhabi club. Eric Mouloungui, the Gabon international who is recovering from ankle surgery, was replaced by Marcelo Oliveira, the Brazilian forward, who was signed from relegated Sharjah.
Basheer and Bani Yaseen complete Dhafra's foreign quartet.
They join the forwards Makhete Diop, the Senegalese, and Amara Diane, the Ivorian.
Dhafra are on four points from two games and share the top spot in the league with Al Wasl, Al Nasr and Dubai.
They played out a scoreless result with Dubai in the opener and followed it up with a 2-1 win over fellow new boys Dibba Al Fujairah. They face Al Ain, the defending champions, this weekend.
Al Ain stand at three points after earning a 4-1 win over Ajman in the second week of play. Al Ain opened defence of their title with a 6-3 loss to Al Ahli.
Shaibah joins on a loan deal
The Omani international Mohammed Shaibah, who spent a one-year loan spell at Al Wahda last season, has returned to the Abu Dhabi club as a replacement for Anas Bani Yaseen, the Jordanian defender.
Bani Yaseen was Wahda’s first foreign signing of the summer but has failed to impress Branko Ivankovic, the Wahda coach.
The 23 year old has played in only one domestic game, the 4-1 loss to Al Wasl in the Pro League opener last week, and did not feature in the club's 3-0 win over Al Nasr in the Etisalat Cup opener because of an injury.
He was dropped in Wahda’s 1-0 victory over Al Shabab in the league on Saturday.
“We want players who can move fast and complement each other in defence,” Ivankovic said when was asked the reason for dropping the Jordanian.
“I was impressed by the new young Emirati defender Othman [Al Shamsi] ahead of Anas.
“He had an excellent first game against Nasr, and did another good job for us with Hamdan [Al Kamali] and Eisa Ahmed in the defence by closely marking the dangerous Shabab forwards Ciel and Edgar Bruno.”
Shaibah, who has again been overlooked by Wasl, this time under their new coach Bruno Metsu, signed a one-year loan deal with Wahda after completing a medical yesterday.
He was the pick of Wahda’s defenders during the last campaign after Basheer Saeed’s departure to Al Ahli and Al Kamali’s loan move to Lyon, the top-flight French club, in the second half of last season.
“Shaibah was real good value for us last season,” said Khaled Awadh, the deputy chief executive officer of the club.
“However, he had to return to Wasl where he had a contract.
“Had he been available for us we wouldn’t have looked for anyone else in the first place. He has been a Wahda player last season and as such he can fit in to the line-up without any delay.”
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