Round two of the QNB Stars League season kicks off today evening when Al Gharafa take on Umm Salal at 8pm. Jean Fernandez’s side showed plenty of promise in their battling opening day draw against Al Ahli and will be targeting the same, solid performance against Umm Salal.
Second half substitute Luis Jimenez improved the fortunes of the Cheetahs last time out, and will now be expected to start for his new side. 
Cheetahs head coach Jean Fernandez praised his youthful starting XI against Al Ahli, noting that this is part of long-term planning at Gharafa. “We are looking to make the side younger, the players will have a big chance to play in the league. They have been training with the side and played well against Al Ahli. This is the vision of the president, and this is the long term project at Al Gharafa.” 
He expected to be a tough clash today. “Umm Salal are a well organised side, who won the opening game of the season. They will have plenty of motivation to win back to back games. We played well against Al Ahli, and are going into the the game in a positive spirit” added the French coach.
As for Umm Salal, they proved to be too strong for Al Kharaitiyat, temporarily topping the early QNB Stars League standings with a 3-1 victory.
Mahmoud Jaber’s side looked impressive moving forward, however it was in defence were they stood out, summer signing Adil Rhaili putting in a impressive display in his debut for the Orange Fortress. The Moroccan defender will have to be at his best against Gharafa, in what could be a early test of Umm Salal’s top four credentials.
Jaber admitted that his side must be be wary of their opponents. “We are in good form and did well in the last match but we must be careful when taking on Al Gharafa. They did well against Al Ahli, and will be hungry to get their first victory of the season. We will have to play well to get the result we need,” he said. 
“We have more strength and depth in the side this season. This was one of our major problems last season and we have addressed this in the transfer window. I think this will really help us this season” added the Egyptian coach, when asked about his squad this season. 
Tomorrow will see three games take place, starting with Al Kharaitiyat welcoming Al Rayyan to Al Khor stadium. The Thunders stuttered in their opening day game against Umm Salal, and will looking for at least a point against Al Rayyan. Worryingly for Kharaitiyat, they failed to put away the chances they created in the tie and will be hoping that Rachid Tiberkanine can find his form in front of goal. 
Al Kharaitiyat boss Ahmad al-Ajlani said even a draw against Al Rayyan will be a good result for them. “The match against Rayyan is tough for us, they had a big win against Al Khor. I am asking my players to do their best, and even if we get a draw this will be a positive result for us. To play a top side will give my side plenty of motivation,” he said
“We did not play well against Umm Salal. We did not give our best, and this upsets me. The reaction from my side is now important. I spoke to the players, about the game and we agreed that we have to work harder, especially against Al Rayyan” admitted al-Ajlani.
Whilst for the visitors Al Rayyan, they enjoyed an impressive opening day victory against Al Khor, running out 4-2 winners.
Encouragingly for head coach Michael Laudrup summer signings Abdulrazak Hamdullah and Mouhcine Moutouali also found the back of the net in the win, and will be targeting back to back wins to start their season.
Laudrup hopes that his wards can continue the good start. “Al Khor and Al Kharaitiyat are similar teams. They are set up in the same way and we expect them to play the same way. We have to be careful of  Al Kharaitiyat especially after they lost their opening game against Umm Salal. We are aiming to continue this good start in the league, that’s always important and builds momentum for the season,” he said.
“We still have players we have not seen, Maksoud and Kasola. We have have a good squad and I think that we can make changes and still be stronger. We will make three changes for the game and I expect the players to come in to do well. That is all you want as a coach” noted Laudrup. 
Laudrup stressed that his side will be fighting on four fronts for silverware this season. “Al Rayyan want to win the title this season. In the league we want to close the gap to Al Duhail and Al Sadd. We will try and compete with them in the league and then compete to win one of the three cups which are up for grabs,” he said.
Fresh from their opening day 3-1 win Al Sailiya take on Al Sadd at Al Ahli stadium. Sami Trabelsi’s side will be eager to inflict further misery on Al Sadd who fell to a shock opening round defeat to Al Markhiya. After coming off from the bench, Uzbek striker Temurkhuja Abdukholiqov will be targeting a starting place against the Wolves. 
Al Sadd on the other hand will be targeting their first points of the season, following their shock 2-1 defeat to Markhiya. 
Head coach Jesualdo Ferriera blamed the humidity and squad fatigue for the defeat. The Wolves should welcome back top scorer Bagdad Bounjah for the match.
The final match tomorrow will see the two promoted sides face each other when Qatar SC take on Al Markiya. The Kings played well despite losing 3-2 to Al Duhail, and coach Gabriel Calderon will be realistically targeting three points for his team.
Markhiya will be on a high, following their win over Al Sadd. Yusef Adam’s side will be hoping to continue their impressive start with a statement win over their fellow promoted team.
Saturday’s QNB Stars action concludes round two, and the first match of the day will see Al Duhail looking to continue winning ways against Al Arabi in the match of the week. Djamel Belmadi’s side left it late to defeat Qatar SC last time out and will be aiming for a better performance against the Dream Team.
As for Al Arabi, they looked out of sorts in their 3-1 defeat, despite a spectacular strike from summer signing Khalfan Ibrahim.  
The round concludes with Al Khor taking on Al Ahli. The Knights didn’t enjoy the best opening day, after being comprehensively being beaten 4-2 by Al Rayyan. 
New coach Laurent Baldine will be hoping that summer signing David da Silva can find the back of the net, after looking lively at times during the opening game of the season. Whilst for Ahli, new boss Joaqun Caparrs will be looking for his first three points of the campaign.

Fixtures
Today: Al Gharafa vs Umm Salal at Al Gharafa Stadium 8pm
Tomorrow: Al Kharaitiyat vs Al Rayyan at Al Khor Stadium 5:50pm; Al Sailiya vs Al Sadd at Al Ahli Stadium 8pm; Qatar SC vs Al Markhiya at Al Duhail Stadium 8pm
Saturday: Al Duhail vs Al Arabi at Al Duhail Stadium 5:50pm; Al Khor vs Al Ahli at Al Khor Stadium 8pm