Match Report
The table gap was wide: 40 points between Sabah (1st, 78 pts) and Sumqayıt (7th, 38 pts). Per game in the league, Sabah were scoring 2.27 and conceding 0.76, Sumqayıt 1.27 and 1.52, against a competition average of 1.29 goals per team per game.
Sabah were unbeaten in 15, having scored in 7 consecutive games. A win had eluded Sumqayıt for 8 matches. Sabah had banked 11 of the last 15 points on offer; Sumqayıt, 2.
13 meetings are on record — 6 won by Sabah, 2 by Sumqayıt, 5 drawn, at 2.54 goals per meeting. Whoever hosts gains little here: home teams have taken just 38% of the wins in this fixture.
The match was played at Bank Respublika Arena (capacity 13,000). Half-time and full-time told different stories: Sabah led 1-0 at the break, before 3 more goals closed it at 3-1.
Goal scorers
Sabah: Joy-Lance Mickels (49'), Kaheem Parris (24'), Veljko Simic (71') · Sumqayıt: Nsana Simon (90')
Key stats
Possession: Sabah 54% · Sumqayıt 46% · Total shots: 13-3 · On target: 6-1 · Corners: 6-4