Gharafa and Al Khor will both be looking for full points to improve their position in the league table

After international break, the QNB Stars League will resume tomorrow with three matches to be played. The first day of round four fixtures will see Al Gharafa taking on Al Khor, followed by Umm Salal facing Al Arabi and Al Sailiya meeting Al Kharaitiyat.
Gharafa and Al Khor will both be looking for full points to improve their position in the league table. Gharafa are now ninth with only two points from two draws and one defeat, while Al Khor are sixth with four points from a victory, draw and defeat each. Gharafa are yet to settle into their stride as the players seek better co-ordination among themselves. Gharafa coach Jean Fernandez said yesterday that his team was all focused on getting into winning ways.  
“The team wasn’t set in the beginning and couldn’t start the league campaign well. Ahead of this match, we are concentrating only on scoring a win as we must be collecting maximum number of points. Initially, we tried many combinations and we were closer to victory too. However, luck wasn’t on our side and we lagged behind when it mattered the most,” said Fernandez.
“We’ve many new players and a new-look team capable of going for victories. The QSL Cup matches during the break gave us chances to test youngsters as they needed to play more matches. We’re eagerly looking forward to play against Al Khor, where I spent two seasons,” the Frenchman added.
In the second match, in form teams Salal and Arabi lock horns. Salal are among the top four teams in the league table with seven points from two wins and one draw. They are having a terrific run so far having put up some strong performances, which left them only two points adrift of table toppers Al Duhail and Al Sadd after the first three rounds.
On the other hand, Arabi are also on a high following their victory over Qatar SC in the previous round. That win came after two defeats. They are still languishing at the eight position in standings with three points. Hence the match between both sides will be tough and exciting.
Salal’s Egyptian coach Mahmoud Jaber was optimistic that his team would get full three points against Al Arabi. “We’ve had a wonderful start to the season and we’re keen on continuing that way. Against a team like Arabi who have a good reputation and some outstanding players, we must give off our best in order to register a victory,” he said.
“Our target is high this time too and we will take it game by game. Syria’s Mahmoud al-Mawas played two tough games against Australia in the World Cup qualifiers and I’ll have to talk to him and see if he’s ready to play. We’ve equally-good two players in each position and a strong bench, and I’m happy with my players’ performances,” Jaber said, adding they didn’t feel pressure to stay in the top-four position.
Al Arabi coach Qais Yaakoubi said nothing less than three points would satisfy them. “The victory over Qatar SC in the previous round has done a world of good for us, be it players, technical staff and team management. We felt very good and it has really boosted our confidence. We won’t be satisfied without maximum points from this match,” said Yaakoubi. “We hope to continue from where we left off. Our players took some time to settle into their stride. We’re still in the process of building a strong side. We hope to achieve it soon,” the Tunisian added.
Meanwhile, Sailiya will be keen to extend their good run when they face Kharaitiyat at the Al Ahli Stadium. They are fourth with six points from two victories and one loss. They had registered a big win over Al Markhiya in the previous round. Coach Sami Trabelsi said: “Even though we’re in a good position three rounds into the league campaign, our team is still improving after every outing. We hope to maintain the momentum. At the same time, I keep telling my players not to be complacent and to stay focused on winning matches.”
“We know Al Kharaitiyat are at the moment struggling to find their footing with a string of bad results. However, we won’t take them lightly. In Ahmad al-Ajlani, they’ve one of the best coaches from the Arab region and we should be wary of our opponents,” added the Tunisian.
Meanwhile, Al Kharaitiyat so far have just a point from their drawn encounter with Al Khor. So they will naturally be eager to gain first victory in the league this season.
Kharaitiyat coach Ahmad al-Ajlani said the players were training hard with an aim of reversing the trend of negative results. “It’s still the beginning of the season. We had started the new campaign with almost the same team we had at the end of last season. After the first two defeats, we could put up a strong performance against Al Khor and we were closer to victory before settling for a draw,” he said.
“In football, we’ve to wait for some time to get good results. This is not the time to press the panic button,” added the Tunisian.