Even though runaway leaders Al Sadd are expected to have it easy over Al Ahli in the QNB Stars League today, coach Xavi could hardly contain his excitement at the prospect of seeing action after two weeks as the tournament resumes following a break for the prestigious FIFA Club World Cup.
With 41 points in their kitty from 15 matches, Al Sadd are way ahead of second-placed Al Duhail (28) who finished fifth in the global club tournament that ended in Thursday with Bayern Munich winning the title.
Al Sadd had walloped Al Ahli 7-1 when they met earlier in the league on October 25, but Xavi is insistent that it would be naïve to expect a similar result today.
“Our next game is against Al Ahli and you know we won the first game 7-1, but this is not their reality,” said the Spaniard.
“They are competing really well, they have a good team and a good coach, and they are having a very good season. I think they are not in the best moment now, because they started very well and then lost some games.
 “Still, they have a good team and good players, and they have a strong character, especially the coach, who is doing very well. So, we cannot relax. We have to continue; we still haven’t won anything in the league yet.”
“Of course, we have a big advantage, but we have to maintain it and win the title as soon as we can.”
Asked about returning to action after a two-week break, Xavi said: “I think it’s better for us to compete and we are excited to do that again.”
“We were missing the competition, after two weeks without games. We are restarting and we are excited to continue like we did until now. We are in a good moment, I have to insist, but we cannot relax. We want three points.
Xavi also stressed that Al Sadd’s title dreams rested in their own hands and that they couldn’t afford to lose focus at this stage.
 “Now it depends on Al Sadd to win this title. If we win nine points, for sure we will complete the challenge. I am happy for the players because I think they deserve this. We worked really hard all season and now, it’s the most important part of the season.”
“We will play in the Qatar Cup also, but now we have to focus on the league and win this title.”
Al Ahli, coached by Nebojsa Jovovic, have seven wins and two draws to their credit, but have suffered six defeats.
They are sixth in the standings with 23 points but more importantly they are one of four teams who can still finish in second place if Al Duhail suffer some reverses in their next few games.
Al Gharafa meanwhile would be keen to bag three points against take on Al Sailiya today which will help them displace Al Duhail from second spot – even though it could be only for a day.
Al Gharafa, under coach Slavisa Jokanovic, have registered eight wins, three draws and four defeats.
Al Sailiya are eighth in the table with 19 points. The Peregrines have five wins, four draws and six defeats against their name.
Another match today sees Al Khor face bottom club Al Kharaitiyat who have won only two of 15 games so far and are in the danger zone as far as maintaining their top-flight status is concerned.