The footballers of "Arkadag" have strengthened their lead in the Turkmenistan championship among the clubs of the higher league, increasing their advantage over their closest pursuer, "Ahal," to 5 points.

This situation developed after the 12th round, in which "Arkadag" won away against "Merv" with a score of 2:0, while "Ahal" was unable to defeat Turkmenbashi’s "Shagadam" at home, drawing 1:1.

The reigning two-time champions of Turkmenistan secured their victory in Mary thanks to goals from Didar Durdyyev (6th minute) and Altymyrat Annadurdyyev (78th minute). With these goals, they both increased their lead in the top scorer race, now each having 7 goals, one ahead of their teammate Begench Akmamedov.

Both teams finished the game with incomplete lineups due to mutual send-offs in the 90th minute: Amangeldi Saparov ("Merv") for a second yellow card and Ahmet Ataev ("Arkadag") for a straight red card.

"Ahal," playing at the capital’s "Nisa" stadium against "Shagadam," was leading 1:0 after a goal by Gurbanmukhammet Esenov in the 39th minute. However, they failed to hold onto the win, conceding an equalizer in the 51st minute after a precise strike by Ikhlas Magtymow.

After these matches, "Arkadag" has 30 points from 10 games, while "Ahal" has 25 from 12. "Altyn Asyr," after 11 matches, and "Shagadam," after 13, share third and fourth places with 22 points each.

The 12th round will conclude with the matches: "Kopetdag" vs. "Altyn Asyr" and "Nebitchi" vs. "Ashgabat."