Al Arabi will go in as favourites when they take on Al Shamal in the QNB Stars League today. Arabi, who are fourth in the standings, have won three matches and lost two so far.
Coach Younes Ali called the match against ‘Al Shamal’ an important one against ‘difficult opponents’. “All matches are important to us, regardless of the opponents, and I always talk to the players that every upcoming confrontation is difficult. Al Shamal are difficult opponents, they offer good football and high levels,” Al Arabi said yesterday.
“Al Shamal have good players and we have to appear better than the previous match before the break and we must be fully focused throughout the 90 minutes in order to get the three points,” Ali said before adding the his ranks are ready for the match.
“The preparations were good in the absence of international players. During our participation in the Ooredoo Cup, we were keen to push the largest group of players to raise the physical rate, especially players who did not play much in the last period. We are well prepared for the Al Shamal match and hope to achieve a positive result,” he said.
Al Shamal, who returned to the First Division after six seasons, are ninth in the standings with four points (one victory, one draw and three defeats). Al Shamal coach Hicham Jadrane admitted today’s match is a tough challenge for his side.
“Al Arabi are one of the best teams this season. Al Arabi have presented good levels and have not conceded goals this season except against Al Sadd and Al Duhail, which underlines that we are facing a tough team,” said Jadrane, but warned his side has the potential of pulling off an upset like they did to Qatar SC last month.
“We are aware of the difficulty of the task against Al Arabi, but that does not mean we won’t be aiming for a positive result. We are on the right path and our goal is to always continue to develop. Our target is to achieve more positive results that will improve the team’s ranking,” he said.
“We are determined to achieve a result that satisfies us. We know we are in an important stage of the league and that we have to get used to this scenario. We hope success becomes part of our plans from here onwards,” said Hicham.
Today’s other matches will see Al Sailiya visiting Al Wakrah while Qatar SC will meet Umm Salal at Al Arabi Stadium.
Schedule
Today: 5:30pm: Al Shamal vs Al Arabi at Al Arabi Stadium; 5:30pm: Al Sailiya vs Al Wakrah at Al Wakrah Stadium; 7:45pm: Qatar SC vs Umm Salal at Al Arabi Stadium
Tomorrow: 5:30pm: Al Sadd vs Al Gharafa at Al Gharafa Stadium; 5:30pm: Al Khor vs Al Ahli at Al Khor Stadium; 8:10pm: Al Duhail vs Al Rayyan at Al Gharafa Stadium
Coach Younes Ali called the match against ‘Al Shamal’ an important one against ‘difficult opponents’. “All matches are important to us, regardless of the opponents, and I always talk to the players that every upcoming confrontation is difficult. Al Shamal are difficult opponents, they offer good football and high levels,” Al Arabi said yesterday.
“Al Shamal have good players and we have to appear better than the previous match before the break and we must be fully focused throughout the 90 minutes in order to get the three points,” Ali said before adding the his ranks are ready for the match.
“The preparations were good in the absence of international players. During our participation in the Ooredoo Cup, we were keen to push the largest group of players to raise the physical rate, especially players who did not play much in the last period. We are well prepared for the Al Shamal match and hope to achieve a positive result,” he said.
Al Shamal, who returned to the First Division after six seasons, are ninth in the standings with four points (one victory, one draw and three defeats). Al Shamal coach Hicham Jadrane admitted today’s match is a tough challenge for his side.
“Al Arabi are one of the best teams this season. Al Arabi have presented good levels and have not conceded goals this season except against Al Sadd and Al Duhail, which underlines that we are facing a tough team,” said Jadrane, but warned his side has the potential of pulling off an upset like they did to Qatar SC last month.
“We are aware of the difficulty of the task against Al Arabi, but that does not mean we won’t be aiming for a positive result. We are on the right path and our goal is to always continue to develop. Our target is to achieve more positive results that will improve the team’s ranking,” he said.
“We are determined to achieve a result that satisfies us. We know we are in an important stage of the league and that we have to get used to this scenario. We hope success becomes part of our plans from here onwards,” said Hicham.
Today’s other matches will see Al Sailiya visiting Al Wakrah while Qatar SC will meet Umm Salal at Al Arabi Stadium.
Schedule
Today: 5:30pm: Al Shamal vs Al Arabi at Al Arabi Stadium; 5:30pm: Al Sailiya vs Al Wakrah at Al Wakrah Stadium; 7:45pm: Qatar SC vs Umm Salal at Al Arabi Stadium
Tomorrow: 5:30pm: Al Sadd vs Al Gharafa at Al Gharafa Stadium; 5:30pm: Al Khor vs Al Ahli at Al Khor Stadium; 8:10pm: Al Duhail vs Al Rayyan at Al Gharafa Stadium