Sadd, Jaish battle for spot in AFC C’League group stages

Al Sadd coach Hussein Ammouta. Right: El Jaish coach Sabri Lamouchi.

By Sports Reporter/DohaQatar clubs Al Sadd and El Jaish have one more hurdle to clear before they can qualify for the group stages of the AFC Champions League. Today Sadd takes on Abu Dhabi’s Al Wahda while Jaish face Iran’s Naft Tehran in the West Zone play-offs. The disadvantage for both teams is that they will be playing away from home. But both teams are in good form in the Qatar Stars League with Sadd having thumped Umm Salal 4-1 and Jaish shocking Lekhwiya 2-0 in respective encounters. These results will give confidence to the teams that they can qualify for the Asian Champions League group stage.In the preliminary round, Sadd scraped through 11-10 on penalties against Bahrain’s Al Riffa. And Jaish came from a goal down to defeat Oman’s Al Nahda 2-1. Both clubs will have to put in a stronger performance if they are to progress to the next round.Here are how the Qatari teams and their opponents line up:Naft Tehran v El JaishWinners to go in Group B along with Pakhtakor, Al Shabab and Al AinQatari Armed Forces side El Jaish reached the Round of 16 on their AFC Champions League debut in 2013 but narrowly missed out on the Knockout Stage in 2014. They have finished in the top-three in the past three Qatar Stars League seasons and are in the Play-offs after finishing runners-up behind Lekhwiya in 2014. They beat Oman’s Al Nahda 2-1 in the second Preliminary Round to set up their meeting with Naft Tehran, and are currently third domestically, nine points off league leaders Al Sadd after beating second-placed Lekhwiya 2-0 on Saturday.How they qualified: Qatar Stars League runners-upPast ACLs: 2013 – Round of 16; 2014 – Group StageNaft Tehran went close to winning a maiden Iran Pro League title in 2014 but just missed out after losing 1-0 at Sepahan in their final game to finish third, three points behind champions Foolad Khuzestan. It was their highest-ever league finish and earned them a spot in the AFC Champions League Play-offs – their first ever appearance in Asia’s premier club competition. They are currently top of the Iran Pro League, two points ahead of Esteghlal.How they qualified: Iran Pro League third placeNo previous AFC Champions League appearancesAl Wahda v Al SaddWinners to go in Group C along with Foolad Khouzestan, Lokomotiv and Al HilalWinners of the AFC Champions League in 2011, Al Sadd won a remarkable second Preliminary Round penalty shootout 11-10 against Bahrain’s Riffa to get this far. They qualified for the 2015 play-off stage after trouncing Al Sailiya 3-0 in the Emir Cup final. The Doha club won the Asian Club Championship in 1989 and were crowned the continent’s top club again three years ago when they beat Korea’s Jeonbuk Motors on penalties in the final. They are currently top of the Qatar Stars League ahead of their arch-rivals Lekhwiya.How they qualified: Qatar Emir Cup winnersPast ACLs: 2003 – Group Stage; 2004 – Group Stage; 2005 – Quarter-Finals; 2006 – Group Stage; 2007 – Group Stage; 2008 – Group Stage; 2010 – Group Stage; 2011 – Champions; 2014 – Quarter-FinalsAl Wahda are in the AFC Champions League Play-offs after finishing runners-up in the UAE Pro League in 2014. The Abu Dhabi club have made five previous appearances in the tournament and reached the quarter-finals in 2004 and the semi-finals in 2007. They are currently flying high domestically, with Friday’s 3-1 win over Bani Yas seeing them move to third in the UAE’s top-flight.How they qualified: UAE Pro League runners-upPast ACLs: 2004 – Quarter-Finals; 2006 – Group Stage; 2007 – Semi-Finals; 2008 – Group Stage; 2010 – Group StageFixturesNAFT TEHRAN (IRN) VS EL JAISH QAT)Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran, 5:30pm Qatar TimeAL WAHDA (UAE) VS AL SADD (QAT)Venue: AL Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi, 6:10pm Qatar TimeJaish looking at win against Lekhwiya for inspirationEl Jaish’s football delegation left yesterday for Iran to play against Neft Tehran in the final stage of the qualification round of AFC Champions League 2015. The match is scheduled to be played this Tuesday. The delegation is headed by Youssef Dasmal – Head of Football, who expressed his gratitude for the big victory the team achieved against Lekhwiya in round 17 of Qatar Stars League.Dasmal said to the official website: “The importance of this win lies in the fact that it gives us huge motivation before our Asian Champions League confrontation, because this is the top ranking team in the league table with lots of distinguished players.”He added: “we will take advantage of this positive aspect, despite the exhaustion and the quantity of matches we are facing, as our Head Coach Sabri Lamouchi is doing well with this negative point through the rotation of all players in order to avoid exhausting them.”Youssef Dasmal continued: “Lamouchi is a big coach and well-known before coming to Doha and if he succeeds with El Jaish, this would be very normal. We all wish him the best during the coming period.”If the Frenchman can take Jaish into the group stages it will be a great achievement and one that will boost the morale of the team immensely.