Al Sadd coach Hussein Ammouta (left) and Lekhwiya coach Michael Laudrup during the pre-match press conference yesterday. PICTURES: Shemeer Rasheed

By Sports Reporter/Doha

Al Sadd go into the second leg of their AFC Champions League Round of 16 meeting with fellow Qataris Lekhwiya today hoping victory in the final of the Emir’s Cup on Saturday will give them the boost needed to advance to the quarter-finals of the continental championship.
Al Sadd picked up the trophy with a 2-1 win over Al Jaish just days ahead of their make-or-break meeting with Michael Laudrup’s side, who hold a 2-1 lead after the first leg last Tuesday.
Midfielder Jasser Yehia will be available for coach Lhoussaine Ammouta after missing the first leg through suspension while former AFC Player of the Year Khalfan Ibrahim  could start after continuing his recovery from a hip injury that saw him start on the bench last week.
Defender Ibrahim Majed will not be available as he continues to recover from surgery on a foot injury that ruled him out for the remainder of the season.
“The match against Lekhwiya will be very tough and difficult,” said Ammouta. “We will be playing against a strong team who won the local league.”
“We need to maintain our concentration particularly as we have had some big matches recently and the schedule has been heavy for us. Winning the Emir’s Cup will give us a big push and the players will be motivated to get a positive result.”
Al Sadd, who won the AFC Champions League title back in 2011, have performed well under the weight of a demanding schedule in recent weeks, and Ammouta is hopeful that the magnitude of the occasion will be enough to give his players one final push before breaking for the summer.
“There hasn’t been a lot of time between the Emir’s Cup final and the match against Lekhwiya to prepare well,” he said. “The weather conditions will also be important, but I’m confident that we will go into the match with great concentration and motivation.”

‘EXPECT TOUGH ENCOUNTER’
Meanwhile Lekhwiya coach Michael Laudrup is expecting an exciting clash with Sadd. The Danish coach led Lekhwiya to the QSL title ahead of runners-up Al Sadd and his side have one foot in the last eight of the ACL following their 2-1 first-leg victory.
A draw or even a 1-0 loss against the newly crowned Emir’s Cup champions will be enough to ensure Lekhwiya advance to the quarter-finals, as they did in 2013.
“This is an important match and I expect a tough encounter between the two teams who won the two main titles this season and it will be exciting to see who will advance to the knockout stage of the AFC Champions League,” said the former Swansea City manager.
“We had a good match in the first leg, especially in the first half. The result was good for us as it gives us an advantage for the next match.”
Lekhwiya will be without midfielder Luiz Junior, who is suspended after being sent off in the dying minutes of the first leg.
“We expect that Al Sadd will put a lot of effort into the attack to get the goals they need to make a comeback but hopefully we can stop them and capitalise on the first leg result,” continued Laudrup , whose team lost to Al Sadd in the semi-finals of the Emir’s Cup just days before the first leg win.
Fixtures
(All times are in GMT except where specified)  
Kashiwa Reysol (Japan) v Suwon (Korea) (1000)
Beijing Guo’an (China) v Chonbuk (Korea) (1130)   
Lekhwiya (Qatar) v Al Sadd (Qatar) (7pm local time)
Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) v Perspolis (Iran) (1805)


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