Faisali to face arch nemesis Wihdat on Friday

AMMAN — Week 13 of the 62nd Jordan Professional League kicks off on Thursday, with the most anticipated match of the season between all-time rivals Faisali and Wihdat slated for Friday.

As Leg 2 kicked off last week, Faisali and Wihdat still share the lead, with the former leading on goal difference. Faisali beat Arabi 2-1 as Wihdat beat Ramtha 1-0, with striker Moataz Salhani scoring a goal that has attracted international attention.

Ramtha are third and next play Hussein Irbid, while Baqaa, in fourth place, have a chance to improve when they face Sarih.

That Ras, who beat Tajikistan’s Ravshan 3-2 on Tuesday and boosted their Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup Round 2 chances, will play Manshieh, who beat Hussein 2-0 to climb to eighth place.

Jazirah held Baqaa 1-1 and next play Arabi. On the other hand, titleholders Shabab Urdun, whose match against That Ras has been postponed, next play bottom placed Sheikh Hussein.

Faisali climbed up the standings only in the last part of Leg 1 after playing three postponed matches — beating Wihdat 1-0, holding Ramtha 0-0 and Shabab Urdun 2-2. Meanwhile, Wihdat lost momentum after going down 2-0 to That Ras.

The season was halted many times, including during the national team’s participation in the eighth West Asian Championship, the U-22 team’s participation at the AFC U-22 Championship and Asian Cup Group A qualifiers. Jordan beat Syria 2-1 in its final qualifier and has advanced to the Asian Cup.

The Jordan Football Association  has now set the season’s agenda to end May 31.

Standings after Week 12 (last week’s rank in parenthesis)

* Postponed match