Gharafa, Umm Salal in key clash today

Sparks fly whenever Al Gharafa and Umm Salal face off. It will be no different this time as they meet for the first time in this season’s QNB Stars League The Cheetahs, who have seven points, will look to consolidate their position with a victory, while The Orange Fortress will try to stay on course for a top-four spot.The game will also be noted more on the technical front as both teams are under French coaches since the start of this season.Christian Gourcuff replaced Turk Bulent Uygun at Al Gharafa, while Laurent Banide came to Umm Salal in place of ex-Moroccan international Talal El Karkouri, who had also also played for The Orange Fortress and Qatar SC.Al Gharafa easily beat Al Ahli (4-0), while Umm Salal lost to Al Arabi (1-5) in Week 4 of the QNB Stars League.Gharafa coach Gourcuff said his team aimed to maintain their form as they seek to challenge Al Sadd and Al Duhail for the title.“The game against Umm Salal is of great importance. We are trying not to disturb our team composition. The absence of international players as well as injuries to some affected our preparations, but they went off well,” said Gourcuff.“We played a match in the QSL Cup too. Those who did duty for their countries have reached back and we are trying to field the best eleven against Umm Salal. We are keen to maintain our momentum and keep achieving good results.”Umm Salal coach Laurent Banide would be keen to see his side bounce back from the defeat to Al Arabi earlier.“It’s a difficult match again because of the strength of the opponents. We prepared the side in the best possible way as we were keen to come back into the league competition after suffering a demoralising defeat at the hands of Al Arabi,” said Banide.“We have to do something as Al Gharafa are a big team. We will try to put up a good show and achieve a positive result. In the previous game, we started badly and we could not compensate. A good start is important against Al Gharafa. I know our opponents are good and we prepared well for this confrontation.“The defence is the spirit of the team and we worked well to tackle Al Gharafa. Our new professional player Arnold Mwevida is good and I hope he will be a strong addition to Umm Salal.”Meanwhile, Al Ahli who have just one victory to their credit, will take on winless Al Kharaitiyat.Both coaches (Milan Macala of Al Ahli and Abdulaziz El Amri of Al Kharaitiyat) had stressed the need for a win at this stage as the teams are desperate to make a turnaround in their fortunes.Al Ahli and Al Kharaitiyat had lost to Al Gharafa (0-4) and Al Rayyan (1-2) respectively in the previous round.