Al Khor face tough task against Al Rayyan

Al Khor, the only team yet to register a victory in this season’s QNB Stars League, face a tough task when they host Al Rayyan today. Al Khor are at the bottom of the table with two points, while Al Rayyan have 14 points from four wins and two draws.While Al Khor badly want to move away from the danger zone, Al Rayyan cannot afford to drop points as they seek to keep pace with top teams Al Sadd and Al Duhail in that order. The Kings are also behind Al Sailiya. Despite the big difference in the table, the game will be open as both teams seek points. Al Khor had lost 0-1 to Umm Salal, whereas Al Rayyan defeated Al Shahania 1-0 in the previous round.However, Al Khor have a game in hand as their Week 5 fixture against Al Sadd was rescheduled due to the latter’s AFC Champions League commitment.Al Khor are under new French coach Bernard Casoni after they parted ways with Tunisian Adel Sellimi and put Under-23 coach Omar Najhi in charge. Casoni began his coaching career in 1999 with Olympique Marseille. He was also at the helm of Club Africain and Etoile du Sahel in Tunisia. The 57-year-old was a player of repute as well.Ahead of the game, Casoni said his team has to put in an excellent show against a big team like Rayyan. “We are up against a big team, but our main goal is to win three points, especially since the competition is becoming gripping after every game. We could have won our previous match against Umm Salal,” Casoni said“When we play against teams with great individual capabilities, we have to bring out excellent team spirit and show great tactical commitment. The team’s ranking does not bother me and I do not have to worry. We have no alternative than move up the table. We have to work properly and well to get the team out of the danger zone,” he added. Al Rayyan will aware of the fact that Al Khor are tricky opponents, especially while playing at home. So Argentinian Rodolfo Arruabarrena’s men will spare no effort in pursuit of their fifth victory. Arruabarrena said his team was in good shape but expected a tough match against Al Khor. “It is important that we get full points from the game against Al Khor. We have focused on tactical aspects and the team is ready. All matches are tough not only for Al Rayyan or Al Khor, but for all the teams. We beat Al Shahania by a single goal in the last round, but we wasted a lot of chances in the second half,” the Argentine said.In another match today, Al Shahania will lock horns with Al Ahli at the Al Arabi Stadium with both teams eager to register victory. Shahania are presently eighth with seven points and Al Ahli ninth on six points.Both sides have two victories each to their credit. While they drew four matches, they lost twice apiece. Interestingly, their goal difference is also same (-9). Al Shahania have scored five goals and conceded 14. On the other hand, Al Ahli have netted nine times while conceding 18 goals. Last week, Shahania lost to Rayyan 0-1, whereas Al Ahli suffered a 1-2 defeat at the hands of reigning champions Al Duhail. The clash will also be noted for the technical confrontation between Al Ahli’s Czech coach Milan Macala and his Shahania counterpart Jose Murcia from Spain.Al Ahli may get back the services of Moroccan attacking midfielder Mohsine Moutaouli, who was missing in action in the previous round.