Al-Dhafra v Sharjah FC — prediction, stats and goal analysis

Pro League · Saturday, 15 August 2026 · 15:10. Final score 1–3 (half-time 0–1). Before kick-off we rated it 51% under 2.5 goals — the match finished with 4, so that call missed. That rating was frozen into a version-controlled ledger before the game and has not been touched since.

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Our ratings for this match

MarketYesNoOur call
Over 2.5 goals49%51%Under
Over 3.5 goals32%68%no pick
Both teams to score47%53%No

The result model puts Al-Dhafra at 39%, the draw at 25% and Sharjah FC at 36%, from expected goals of 1.5 and 1.43.

Bookmaker prices and where we differ

MarketPriceImpliedOur ratingEdge
Over 2.5 goals1.8053%49%-4%
Under 2.5 goals2.0047%51%+4%
Both teams to score1.7354%47%-7%

Implied percentages have the bookmaker's margin removed, so they add to 100 and can be compared with our rating directly. Edge is simply the gap between the two. A positive edge means our model thinks the outcome is likelier than the price suggests — it is not a tip, and a high probability with a negative edge is a poor bet however safe it looks. Prices are a pre-match snapshot from a single bookmaker and move constantly.

Match odds: Al-Dhafra 3.80, draw 3.60, Sharjah FC 1.73.

How we got this number

The league sets the starting point. Pro League has produced over 2.5 goals in 53% of its matches, and that is where a team with no record of its own would sit.

Each side's own record. Al-Dhafra have 0 in 0 this season, Sharjah FC 0 in 0. Those records are pulled toward the league rate with the weight of about 32 matches — enough that two or three unusual games cannot swing a rating — giving 53% and 53%.

Last season still counts, briefly. With 0 and 0 games played this season, last season's rates are still blended in and fade out entirely by game 14 — the point at which our testing showed they stop adding accuracy. That moves the two figures to 54% and 58%.

The mix. Weighted 40% home side, 40% away side and 20% league — the split that beat every alternative across 30,582 matches of testing — that gives 55%.

Head to head. These sides have met 2 times in three years, producing over 2.5 goals in 0%. That nudges the number 10% of the way toward the head-to-head pattern — deliberately small, because fixtures change more than reputations do — landing on 50%.

Goal expectation. Separately a Poisson model built from attack and defence strength — using real expected-goals data where the league has it — puts this match at 56%, from expected goals of 1.5 for Al-Dhafra and 1.43 for Sharjah FC. Folding in 30% of that view gives 52%.

Season opener. One of these sides has not played a league game yet. Openers run about 2.5 points under their league's norm, measured across 2,727 of them, so the rating is docked to 49%.

This breakdown is generated from the same inputs the rating uses, so it cannot describe a calculation we did not perform. The full model is set out in the methodology.

Season form

TeamGamesO2.5O3.5BTTS
Al-Dhafra0
Sharjah FC0

Head to head

28 Jan 26Al-Dhafra 0–2 Sharjah FCU2.5
17 Oct 25Sharjah FC 2–0 Al-DhafraU2.5
9 Apr 23Sharjah FC 1–0 Al-DhafraU2.5
5 Nov 22Al-Dhafra 0–1 Sharjah FCU2.5
10 Feb 22Sharjah FC 1–0 Al-DhafraU2.5
26 Aug 21Al-Dhafra 0–1 Sharjah FCU2.5

Things worth knowing

More: Al-Dhafra season stats · Sharjah FC season stats · Pro League table and form. Ratings are calibrated probabilities, not tips — a 60% call is expected to miss two times in five.