Rayyan, Gharafa keen to make amends in semis clash today

AlRayyan will be seeking revenge when they face Al Gharafa in the AmirCup semi-final today. Last time these two sides met, Rayyan werethrashed 1-6 by Gharafa in the QNB Stars League.And Rayyan, the last year’s Amir Cup finalist, will be hoping they cansettle the scores at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium. Both the teams had abye into the quarter-finals stage of the competition.While Rayyan cruised to a 3-0 win over Al Arabi in the last-eight stage,Ahmed Alaaeldin saved Al Gharafa from the blushes after the substitutescored the winner in the 88th minute against second division sideMesaimeer.Gharafa are also under pressure coming into the prestigious tournament,having been outplayed 1-6 by Al Duhail in the Qatar Cup semi-finals. Soboth the teams have their own problems to deal with.Rayyan manager Michael Laudrup said his men are aware of the magnitudeof the match and are keen to book their place in the final, which willbe played at the Khalifa International Stadium on May 19. “We are looking to qualify for the final. I am happy that the semi-finalwill be played at the Al Sadd Stadium because the stadium is airconditioned and makes playing better at this time,” he said yesterday.Laudrup said his team’s 1-6 loss to Gharafa in the league will have nobearing on today’s match. “This match is completely different from theleague meeting, because of the circumstances in which the game will beplayed. In the league, it’s totally a different scenario. The playersare motivated to reach the final game,” the Dane said.Rayyan is coming to the Amir Cup after a heartbreaking 4-6 loss onpenalties to Al Sadd in the Qatar Cup semi-final. The tie-breaker wasforced after the teams were tied 2-2 after regular time.Laudrup’s men had many positive results to show for in the league’sfirst phase, but they lost out on the title in the second phase. Theywere as inconsistent in a few matches as they were consistent in many.They will be without their top scorer Abderrazaq Hamdallah, who wasruled out for the rest of the season with an ankle injury. The Moroccanwas the third-best scorer in the QNB Stars League with 18 goals.However, Al Rayyan have the likes of Rodrigo Tabata, Sebastian Soria,Mohamed Alaaeldin, Ahmed Yasser, Ahmed Abdelmaqsoud, Koh Myong-Jin,Mohsine Moutaouli and Daniel Goumou to deliver the goods.On the other hand, Gharafa coach Bulent Uygun is seeking to end histeam’s title drought. They last won the Amir Cup title in 2012.Gharafa finished fourth in the QNB Stars League and the Cheetahs arereaping rewards for making an overhaul in the January transfer window.Uygun took over from Frenchman Jean Fernandez, who guided them to theQSL Cup triumph, before the start of the second phase.They also strengthened their ranks by roping in Dutch attackingmidfielder Wesley Sneijder, Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi and AssimMadibo. They have a good mix of experience and youth, and Uygun hassucceeded in moulding them into a fighting unit.The likes of captain Sneijder, Taremi and Brazilian midfielder DiogoAmado have gelled well with youngsters such as goalkeeper Yusuf Hassan,Amro Seraj, Ilyas Ahmed and Monkez Mohamed. They also have talentedplayers such as Ahmed Alaaeldin, Hassan Fadli, Madibo and Othmanal-Yahri.