Al Sadd are seeking to do an encore, while Al Rayyan are trying to be third time lucky when they clash in the first semifinal of Qatar Cup on Saturday.
The semi-finals will pit the QNB Stars League winners against the fourth-placed team and runners-up against third-placed side. In case of a tie after regular time, matches are decided in a tie-breaker without extra time.
Al Sadd, runners-up in the QNB Stars League this season, have been a regular presence in the Qatar Cup and also in its earlier version, the Heir Apparent’s Cup.
The Wolves ended up on 49 points with 16 wins, one draw and five defeats.
In last season’s Qatar Cup, Al Sadd had defeated Al Rayyan 3-1 in the semi-final and erstwhile El Jaish 2-1 in the final. The Lions had lost to erstwhile Lekhwiya 1-3 in the 2015-16 season’s semifinal.
Jesualdo Ferreira’s men were very much in the QNB Stars League title race till Week 19, but the 3-4 defeat to Al Duhail after a thrilling game dashed their hopes. Had Al Sadd beaten Al Duhail, things might have been different as only two points separated them going into their face-off.
Al Sadd performed consistently well throughout the tournament, but for the occasional slips.
They made very limited changes to their squad this season, with all four professional players — former Barcelona great and World Cup winner Xavi Hernandez of Spain, Algerians Baghdad Bounedjah and Jugurtha Hamroun, and Iran international Morteza Mohammed — staying.
Al Sadd recruited a number of players during the winter transfer window, namely Hamed Ismail, Ali Faridoun, Sami Sabit, Abdulkarim Hassan and Akram Afif.
Al Sadd won the most number of games (16), after Al Duhail (19). At the same time, they had the best defence, conceding only 25 goals, two less than Al Duhail.
They were the second best in terms of the number of goals scored (68) compared to Al Duhail’s 86.
On the other hand, Al Rayyan are seeking their first final in the Qatar Cup after finishing third in the QNB Stars League with 43 points from 13 wins, four draws and five defeats.
It is against this backdrop that Al Rayyan will embark on their Qatar Cup campaign this time. And they will face Al Sadd for the second year in a row.
Al Rayyan had many positive results to show for their efforts in the league’s first phase, but they lost out on the title in the second.
Michael Laudrup’s men were as inconsistent in a few matches as they were consistent in many.
Ahead of the Qatar Cup, they suffered a setback when their top scorer Abderrazaq Hamdallah was ruled out for the rest of the season with an ankle injury.
The Moroccan, the third best scorer in the just-concluded league with 18 goals (after Al Duhail’s Youssef El Arabi and Youssef Msakni), sustained the injury during their 4-1 win over Al Ahli in Week 22.
However, Al Rayyan have the likes of Rodrigo Tabata, Sebastian Soria, Mohamed Alaaeldin, Ahmed Yasser, Ahmed Abdelmaqsoud, Koh Myong-Jin, Mohsine Moutaouli and Daniel Goumou to deliver the goods.
Honours were even in the high-profile Qatar Clasico between Al Sadd and Al Rayyan. While The Wolves lost 1-2 in the first phase, they won 2-0 in the second.
Meanwhile, Al Sadd reached the Round of 16 in the AFC Champions League, where Al Rayyan failed to book their berth in the knockout stage.
Al Rayyan had won the tournament’s first edition in the 1994-95 season when it was held as the Heir Apparent’s Cup, defeating Al Arabi in the final.
The match will kick off at the Al Sadd Stadium at 7pm on Saturday.
In this February 8, 2018, picture, Al Sadd players celebrate Jugurtha Hamroun’s goal in the QNB Stars League match against Al Rayyan. Al Sadd had won the match, the last meeting between the two clubs, 2-0.
