Qatar SC face Al Ahli in a key QNB Stars League clash on Tuesday at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, with the match assuming great significance as both teams battle to finish among the top four.
Qatar SC and Al Ahli had contrasting fortunes in the last round, with the former losing 1-2 to Al Sailiya and slipping one position in the table to fifth with 31 points and the latter gaining much ground as they climbed from sixth to fourth spot with 32 points following their 2-1 last-gasp win over lowly Al Kharaitiyat.
Al Ahli coach Nebojsa Jovovic said the win over Kharaitiyat, in which Ibrahim Majid struck in the stoppage time, has motivated his side. “The victory over Al Kharaitiyat that helped us get back into the top-four bracket is a strong motivation for us to be on the winning path and end the season in the best way,” he said yesterday.
“Football is always fair and gives every team what they deserve. Our players, administrative and technical staff all deserve congratulations on the important victory over Al Kharaitiyat. Now everything is in our hands and we can hope to finish the season in the top four,” The Brigadiers coach added.
Ahli, who once led the league, had lost to Qatar SC 1-4 in the first leg but Jovovic said there was no way to be of any concern for his side.
“I trust the capabilities of my players to finish the league in the best way. We have to calmly look at things as we do not have much time before the next match, so we are showing high concentration to face Qatar SC. I do not want to talk about our match against Qatar SC in the first leg, which we lost by a 1-4 margin because our performance was not up to the mark. Now, the match is open for both teams,” said Jovovic.
Meanwhile, Qatar SC coach Younes Ali said his side was back to full strength and was looking to regain the lost ground. “We realise the importance of the match, so our preparations were done with great energy to score a victory and all of us in the team family will fight it out to achieve what we want,” he said.
“We were somewhat affected by the absence of a number of our players in our previous match against Al Sailiya and the full-strength squad now will have a positive impact. It is a morale booster ahead of the match. Al Ahli are a strong team with very good players. They have a highly-qualified coach and presented good levels through which they achieved what they deserved in the league (top-four position). They did exceptionally well against Al Gharafa and Al Khor, and those results doubled their chances to be in the top four,” added Younes.
Meanwhile, Al Rayyan face runaway champions Al Sadd today. Rayyan are on 34 points, two more than Ahli and will look to preserve their third place. For Sadd, they are looking to end the season unbeaten in the league.
In another match today, Al Duhail take on the relegation-threatened Al Khor. Duhail ensured that they would finish this season as the runners-up behind already-crowned Al Sadd after the former beat Al Arabi 3-2 on Saturday.
But Al Khor, coached by Winfried Schefer, are placed 11th with 15 points and face the possibility of playing the relegation play-off with Second Division runners-up to retain their berth in the top flight.
The goalless draw that The Knights played out against Al Wakrah on Saturday did not help their cause either.
Qatar SC and Al Ahli had contrasting fortunes in the last round, with the former losing 1-2 to Al Sailiya and slipping one position in the table to fifth with 31 points and the latter gaining much ground as they climbed from sixth to fourth spot with 32 points following their 2-1 last-gasp win over lowly Al Kharaitiyat.
Al Ahli coach Nebojsa Jovovic said the win over Kharaitiyat, in which Ibrahim Majid struck in the stoppage time, has motivated his side. “The victory over Al Kharaitiyat that helped us get back into the top-four bracket is a strong motivation for us to be on the winning path and end the season in the best way,” he said yesterday.
“Football is always fair and gives every team what they deserve. Our players, administrative and technical staff all deserve congratulations on the important victory over Al Kharaitiyat. Now everything is in our hands and we can hope to finish the season in the top four,” The Brigadiers coach added.
Ahli, who once led the league, had lost to Qatar SC 1-4 in the first leg but Jovovic said there was no way to be of any concern for his side.
“I trust the capabilities of my players to finish the league in the best way. We have to calmly look at things as we do not have much time before the next match, so we are showing high concentration to face Qatar SC. I do not want to talk about our match against Qatar SC in the first leg, which we lost by a 1-4 margin because our performance was not up to the mark. Now, the match is open for both teams,” said Jovovic.
Meanwhile, Qatar SC coach Younes Ali said his side was back to full strength and was looking to regain the lost ground. “We realise the importance of the match, so our preparations were done with great energy to score a victory and all of us in the team family will fight it out to achieve what we want,” he said.
“We were somewhat affected by the absence of a number of our players in our previous match against Al Sailiya and the full-strength squad now will have a positive impact. It is a morale booster ahead of the match. Al Ahli are a strong team with very good players. They have a highly-qualified coach and presented good levels through which they achieved what they deserved in the league (top-four position). They did exceptionally well against Al Gharafa and Al Khor, and those results doubled their chances to be in the top four,” added Younes.
Meanwhile, Al Rayyan face runaway champions Al Sadd today. Rayyan are on 34 points, two more than Ahli and will look to preserve their third place. For Sadd, they are looking to end the season unbeaten in the league.
In another match today, Al Duhail take on the relegation-threatened Al Khor. Duhail ensured that they would finish this season as the runners-up behind already-crowned Al Sadd after the former beat Al Arabi 3-2 on Saturday.
But Al Khor, coached by Winfried Schefer, are placed 11th with 15 points and face the possibility of playing the relegation play-off with Second Division runners-up to retain their berth in the top flight.
The goalless draw that The Knights played out against Al Wakrah on Saturday did not help their cause either.
