Umm Salal face Qatar SC, aim to get back to fourth

Qatar SC will have a tough task on hand when they are up against Umm Salal in the QNB Stars League today. Umm Salal, with 27 points, are fifth place after losing a spot and are keen to get back to fourth positon. For that, the Orange Fortress cannot afford any slip-ups as Al Gharafa are going strong and have two points more than them. Al Gharafa benefited greatly from the Qatar Football Association’s Disciplinary Committee decision to award them a 3-0 win against Al Markhiya.Gharafa had lost the game 2-3, but the result was overturned after The Oryxes had breached the rule regarding fielding resident players in the QNB Stars League matches.Umm Salal had beaten Al Sailiya 1-0, while Qatar SC had lost 0-4 to Al Rayyan last week. Qatar SC, who are eighth with 18 points, got a shot in the arm as Brazilian striker Patrick Fabiano, who had a long injury layoff after signing for them ahead of the second phase, is ready to play. The teams had played out a 1-1 draw in the first phase.Meanwhile, Al Arabi, having received some confidence booster after their third win, against Al Kharaitiyat last week, will look to build on that when they face Al Markhiya today.It will be hard for Al Markhiya to stay motivated following the decision to overturn their victory over Al Gharafa for breaching the rule regarding fielding resident players in the QNB Stars League matches.The Oryxes had hopes of avoiding relegation after prevailing over in-form Al Gharafa, that too after being down by two goals. In fact, they had punched way above their weight.Now, they face a daunting task in their fight for survival. Al Arabi are also in the danger zone and Luka Bonacic’s men must pull up their socks if they want to stay afloat. Their first-phase match had ended in a 1-1 draw.Al Sadd's Xavi out injured for three weekDoha: Al Sadd will missace midfielder and captain Xavi Hernandez for three weeks as hesustained a back muscle injury during their 3-4 loss to Al Duhail inWeek 19 of the QNB Stars League on Thursday.Xavi played only in thefirst half of the crucial game. The Spanish star underwent a testyesterday under the supervision of the club’s medical team and a tear onhis back muscle was confirmed. Meanwhile, Al Sadd will play away atUzbekistan’s Nasaf in the third round of AFC Champions League on Monday.