Al Duhail and Al Rayyan will lock horns in an exciting Expo Stars League clash at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium today.
The crucial game for Duhail comes before their much-anticipated AFC Champions League clash against Al Nassr of Saudi Arabia next Tuesday, and reigning league champions would be keen for a victory today. Duhail have not had the greatest starts as the Red Knights are fifth in the standings and only one point behind fourth-placed Al Wakrah, while Rayyan are third. But Duhail are very much in contention as they are only three points away from table toppers Al Sadd.
Christophe Galtier, who replaced Hernan Crespo last month, will rely on his attacking trio of Almoez Ali, Michael Olunga and Philippe Coutinho. The coach will hope that the team’s defence is now further strengthened with the return of Ruben Semedo, who missed the last match.
“There will certainly be pressure on the players, but it will be positive pressure,” said Galtier on Wednesday. “The players have experience in playing such matches. We are happy to face a team that is ahead of us in the standings, as such games are exciting and strong. After our last match against Al Shamal, I decided to give the players a rest to regain their strength, especially since it was a few days after our match against Al Nassr. It was important for them to get some rest before starting preparations for the match with Al Rayyan.”
The Frenchman says his team needs to stop leaking goals. “The team has conceded many goals in previous matches and we must know that this matter is not only a defensive problem, but a problem for the group as a whole. We must play organised football and always have the desire to score more goals than the opponents we face,” Galtier said.
Meanwhile, Rayyan, who suffered defeat against Al Gharafa last week to relinquish the top spot, will hope for a quick turnaround. Their Portuguese coach Leonardo Jardim will have a major challenge in trying to blunt Al Duhail’s strong attack after his team conceded four goals against Gharafa.
“We will play against a strong team, so we must play with full seriousness, with full concentration, and avoid the mistakes that the team made during the last match against Al Gharafa,” said Jardim on Wednesday.
Al Rayyan player Andre Amaro said: “The match against Al Duhail is very important for Al Rayyan in order to regain confidence. Duhail are strong, but we trained during this week in order to correct the mistakes we made during the last match against Al Gharafa and we will try to stop Al Duhail.”
Meanwhile, leaders Al Sadd will host bottom-placed Al Markhiya in an early kick-off. Sadd will seek to continue their winning run while Markhiya will be desperate to avoid a heavy defeat.
Al Sadd coach Bruno Miguel, though, was wary of Markhiya. “A difficult match awaits us. Al Markhiya are an organised team in defence and it will be difficult to overcome them,” he said.
“We have a lot of pressure for the matches, but we are trying to deal with the current situation. At a big club like Al Sadd we need to win all matches. There is no room for draws or defeats. We need to be at the top and this is where we will definitely be,” said Miguel.
Al Markhiya, who have just one win from seven matches, will count on Moroccan star Driss Fettouhi and top scorer Yusupha Njie to help them achieve a positive result against the formidable Al Sadd.
Al Markhiya coach Madjid Bougherra said he has trust in his players to put in a show. “All league matches this season are difficult, as all teams are trying to do something and we are, as well,” he said.
“Sadd are the leading team and are on top of the standings and have high quality players. We have to trust the players and we play every match as a final. We realise that every match is different from the other and of course we are preparing for every game. We cannot reveal our plan that we intend to begin against Al Sadd, but as I mentioned previously, the team’s situation requires that we go into every match as a final with strength and enthusiasm.”
In other match today, Muaither and Umm Salal will clash at the Hamad Bin Khalifa Stadium. Both teams will look to compensate for the loss and return to winning ways. Muaither are in 10th spot in the rankings with four points, while Umm Salal are in seventh place with eight points on goal difference, behind Qatar SC (sixth).