With the title out of their grasp, defending champions Al Duhai will hope to spoil Al Sadd’s own title aspirations when the two giants meet in the Expo Stars league today at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium.Sadd are leading the league table with 43 points – three ahead of Al Gharafa, while Duhail have had a season to forget and are tottering in sixth place with just 22 points. A win against their arch rivals today should give Sadd a huge confidence booster in the title race. But Duhail will have other plans, having seen their title defence crumble meekly. In the first leg between the two sides, Al Sadd had won 3-1.Duhail go into the clash after having lost to Al Rayyan 0-2 last week, while Sadd scored a 2-1 victory over bottom-placed Al Markhiya.Sadd coach Wesam Rizik expects every remaining match ‘will be decisive for us’ and said Duhail’s league position ‘do not reflect their strength’."It’s an important and much-anticipated match against Al Duhail. It will be difficult for both teams. Our target is three points to remain in the lead," said Rizik at a pre-match press conference on Thursday."Every remaining match will be decisive for us. We will play the match as if it is a final and there is no substitute for winning points. The Al Sadd vs Al Duhail matches always witness strong and friendly competition between the players: These games are always played amid great competition between the two teams. Al Duhail are currently in a position that they do not deserve and the results do not reflect their strength, and we are ready to give our best to achieve victory."The Al Sadd fans always support us and stand behind the team. Their presence gives us all confidence and we await them in all upcoming matches to help us win the league championship," added Wesam.Duhail’s star forward Michael Olunga said irrespective of the league positions of both the teams, the contest between the arch rivals is always an important one."We know the importance of the match that awaits us against Al Sadd, who are at the top of the standings and are performing well, but we will give our best on the field in order to achieve victory," the Kenyan said."There are a number of reasons that caused the team’s performance to decline, especially injuries that kept more than one player away from the team, loss of concentration in some matches and the high level of competition. There are psychological factors after the team’s successive losses, but we will try to make up for it," Olunga added."I am here to help the team and I could not score much due to the tactical changes that takes time to adapt to, especially in the offensive aspect, and there is the absence of a number of influential players due to injuries. I was also injured and missed a number of matches, but now we continue to work with all determination to regain our strength in the upcoming matches."In the other match today, Al Wakrah and Al Arabi will lock horns at the Saoud Bin Abdulrahman Stadium. Wakrah are occupying the third spot in the rankings with 37 points, just two ahead of Al Rayyan, who face Muaither tomorrow. Arabi, meanwhile are fifth, one point ahead of DuhailThe match is also an important preparation for Al Arabi before they face Sharjah of the UAE in the Qatar-UAE Super Cup match, to be played on April 12 at the Al Thumama Stadium.Al Wakrah coach Jose Murcia said: "We must show our best in the last four matches. The competition has become stronger between the four teams in the top four and we are focusing first on the next match."Al Arabi coach Younes Ali said: "Al Wakrah are a strong team with a good defensive organization that enabled them to achieve positive results. Victory requires focus and discipline and I hope luck will be on their side in this match to win and get the three points."
April 05, 2024 | 12:20 AM