The Al Dhafra Chronicle
Squad10 Aug 2026
52 days out for Abdulla Fadaq after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Al Dhafra will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Transfer targets10 Aug 2026
Khalfan Mabkhout due for a Al Dhafra medical
Everything agreed with Al Ahli, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Tempers go at Al Dhafra
Jobson was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market10 Aug 2026
Saeed Saeed steps up from the Al Dhafra academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Saeed Saeed has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market10 Aug 2026
Faisal Juma steps up from the Al Dhafra academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Faisal Juma has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market10 Aug 2026
One of our own: Nasser Al Shamsi joins the Al Dhafra first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Nasser Al Shamsi is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market10 Aug 2026
Amer Ismail steps up from the Al Dhafra academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Amer Ismail has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
The dugout10 Aug 2026
The manager makes an example of Rostand Djooh
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Leonard Amasimeku wants to go home
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Al Dhafra know it.
In brief
- Squad 6 new faces, and Al Dhafra are still learning each other
- The dugout Ibrahim Bayesh asks for a word with the manager
- The dugout The manager plants his flag on Vitor