Rayyan vs Duhail headlines third round matches

Round three of the QNBStars League season kicks off on Thursday evening when Al Markhiyatakes on Al Sailiya at Al Arabi stadium. Both sides lost out in roundtwo and will be eager to get back to winning ways ahead of the two weekinternational break.Yusef Adam’s Markhiya narrowly lost 1-0 tofellow promoted side Qatar SC, and will be hunting their first points ofthe season. Ghanaian striker Kwame Karikari was the side’s mostdangerous player in the second half and the target man will be hoping hecan influence the tie in favour of the Oryxes. As for Al Sailiya,they will have to pick themselves up after their 3-2 loss to Al Sadd.Sami Trabelsi’s men will feel hard done by after a late equaliser wasdenied by a correct offside call. The Peregrines will be aiming fortheir second win of the season, and will be hoping Mohamed Muddather canregister his first goals of the season. Muddather was a constant dangerfor his team last campaign, and will be seeing the match againstMarkhiya as the ideal match to open his account for the side this year. Fridaywill see three QNB Stars League games take place, with all six sidesinvolved looking to head into the international break on a high. Twounbeaten sides will face off when Al Rayyan take on Al Duhail to AlSadd stadium in the match of the week for round two. Both sides haveregistered back-to-back wins in the campaign and something may give inthis match-up between two of the strongest sides in the league. AlRayyan have made light work of both Al Khor and Al Kharaitiyat in theirprevious games scoring seven goals and conceding just three. MichaelLaudrup has drilled his side well in preseason, and will be hoping foranother big performance to further underline their title ambitions.Encounters between these two teams are often defined by the finestmargins, and Rayyan defender Gonzalo Viera will have to be at fullconcentration if they are to get the win. Whilst for Al Duhail, theyare heading into their first away match of the season followingvictories over Qatar SC and Al Arabi. Djamel Belmadi’s side willcertainly have to show more balance than their free flowing attackingdisplays in recent weeks. Qatar international midfielder Karim Boudiafis likely to be placed in a defensive midfield role for the match, andhis contributions will be important if the Red Knights are to maintaintheir 100 percent record. Al Sadd will be looking to continuewinning ways against Al Gharafa in the late match at Al Sadd stadium.Jesualdo Ferreira’s side will again be targeting to stay in touch withthe pacesetters in the league. Hassan al-Haydos missed a penalty againstAl Sailiya last time out, and the Qatar international will be lookingto register his first goal of the new campaign.Al Gharafa have beenunspectacular yet solid so far this season, with their youthful sideplaying well under Jean Fernandez. This match against Sadd will be areal test of their capabilities. Experienced keeper Qasem Burhan haspulled off a host of good saves in his opening matches of the season,and the former Qatar international will have to be in form if theCheetahs are to come away with a shock win. Friday’s QNB StarsLeague action is rounded off by Al Kharaitiyat, who are chasing theirfirst points of the season taking on Al Khor. The Thunders will behopeful of upsetting their local rivals and Uzbeki midfielder SanzharTursunov will be vital if Kharaitiyat have any chance of picking up thepoints.Khor picked up their first win of the season in controversialstyle thanks to a late Madson winner. Laurent Banide will now be aimingto pick up back-to-back wins and push up the standings. Iranianmidfielder Soroush Rafiei was the knights standout player against AlAhli last weekend and will have to preform again if Khor are to defeattheir local rivals.On Saturday, winless Al Arabi take on Qatar SC inthe early kick-off. After two comprehensive defeats to open the season,pressure is certainly building on Arabi boss Kais Yâakoubi. As forQatar SC, they will be in high spirits following their win over Markhiyain round two. Al Ahli play their first home match of the seasonagainst an inform Umm Salal side. After one point from their opening twogames, the Brigadiers will be targeting a maiden win for the season.Umm Salal have made another solid star to the league campaign and arerealistically targeting three points to boost their top four ambitions. (QNB Stars League)