Qatar football league kicks from Saturday
Al Sailiya vs Umm Salal
The clash between Al Sailiya and Umm Salal will evoke keen interest among the fans.
Al Sailiya were in the fourth place for most part of last season, but were pushed behind by Umm Salal in the fight for the fifth spot. In fact, The Orange Fortress were very much in the race for the fourth position, which they lost to Al Gharafa.
Al Sailiya retained the services of Algerian Nadir Belhadj and signed Moroccan striker Rachid Tiberkanine from Al Kharaitiyat.
Umm Salal have kept Ivorian Yannick Sagbo, Syrian Mahmoud Mawas and Moroccan Adel Rhaili on their roster while adding Nigerian striker Christian Osaguona.
Al Sailiya coach
Al Sailiya coach Sami Trabelsi spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Umm Salal.
“We have concluded our preparations in a better way ahead of the start of new season even though the preparatory period was short. I hope we will have a better campaign this time than we had last season, where we could have finished in a better position than sixth.
“We have to be very strong and must show more character in order to achieve more and more positive results. We must also play with strong determination in all matches to collect points. Our target is again the top four.
“We have two good strikers in Rachid Tiberkanine (who played for Al Kharaitiyat last season) and Abdelqadir ilyas, who last played for Al Markhiya. Rachid is an opportunistic striker who can win matches on his own. Abdelqadir has also proved his mettle. We are counting on them to deliver the goods mainly.
“We have many better solutions this season. We are facing a tough start, against Umm Salal who are strong in all departments of the game. They have retained most of their players. We will analyse our game after the first four matches when we will have a break,” said Trabelsi.
Umm Salal coach Laurent Banide
Umm Salal coach Laurent Banide spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Sailiya.
“All games are difficult, but things are in our hands to a great extent, especially at the start of the season. We have to embark on our campaign on a confident note.
“We must perform well. We are trying to strike the right balance between attack and defence. We must create enough scoring opportunities and capitalise on them.
“We will see if the team is able to provide a good level. We had a good camp in the pre-season and we seek to implement the strategies on the field.
“The season is sure to be tough and we have to be prepared for the gruelling games.
“We missed out on the fourth position to Al Gharafa very narrowly last season. We will try to be in the top four this time. We have the players to deliver the goods. Most of them are staying from last year,” said Banide.
Al Arabi vs Al Khor
Al Arabi overcame first-phase slump and finished a creditable seventh last season, thanks to Croatian coach Luka Bonacic’s damage-control exercises.
The Dream Team have recruited three new professionals — Iraqi Ahmed Ibrahim, Brazilian Mailson de Farias and Colombian Franco.
Al Khor are under a new coach — Tunisian Adel Sellimi who replaced compatriot Nassif Al Bayawi when the latter left for Al Kharaitiyat. They mainly have Iraqis Ahmed Yasin and Rebin Sulaka, as well as Brazil’s Diego Oksta and Gabon’s Ulysse Nadong to deliver the goods.
Al Arabi coach
Al Arabi coach Luka Bonacic spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Khor.
“New season brings something new. We made many changes last season, with seven or eight players being replaced. We have made some changes this time as well. But then, many changes have been made at Al Arabi over the past few seasons. Players leaving the club is not under my control. It is up to the team management.
“Some of our overseas professional players arrived only two weeks ago. That is not ample time for them to adapt to the squad. I hope they will settle into their stride sooner rather than later.
“As a coach, I implement my plans slowly. I am happy that I could change the fortunes of Al Arabi ever since I took over the team last season. The seventh-place finish was very satisfying.
“Had we been starting by the middle of September, I could have found more solutions. We go into our first match on Saturday and we had to act fast.
“The first three or four games is not about quality of the team. It’s more about players adapting to the situation,” said Bonacic.
Al Khor coach Adel Sellimi spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Arabi.
“We are ready to take on Al Arabi. We had successful preparations during the pre-season camp in the Netherlands, where the new players combined well with team-mates.
“Our professional player quota is now complete. We have bolstered the squad by replacing Brazilian midfielder Madson with Iraqi medio Ahmed Yasin. Another Iraqi player Rebin Sulaka, Brazil’s Diego Costa and Gabon’s Ulysse Nadong are also on our roster.
“We are not worried about playing in the hot weather as the matches will be played in air-conditioned venues,” said Sellimi.
Al Khor captain Nayef Al Breiki said, “All our players are determined to provide a good display. Most of the clubs have strengthened their ranks, so we have to be focused on achieving victories.”
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Al Gharafa vs Qatar SC
Al Gharafa, who finished fourth last season, would look for a good performance this season as well. And for that, they need to make a winning start to their campaign as they take on Qatar SC, who ended up 10th last time.
Al Gharafa are under new coach Christian Gourcuff and have the likes of Dutch star Wesley Sneijder, Iranian Mehdi Taremi and Slovenian Vladimir Weiss in their ranks.
Qatar SC, coached by Abdullah Mubarak, have new recruits Hussein Ali, Alaeddin Al Dali and Brazilian Dodo in the company of Osama Omari as overseas players.
The encounter between Al Gharafa and Qatar SC on Saturday, 4th August, will herald the start of 2018-19 QNB Stars League season. The kick-off is at 17:35 at the Al Sadd Stadium.
The match assumes great importance to both teams as it is crucial for them to make a winning start to the new campaign.
Both Al Gharafa and Qatar SC are sure to go all out and seek full points.
Al Gharafa, who just about managed to finish fourth last season and thereby qualified for the elite Qatar Cup, have Frenchman Christian Gourcuff at the helm. He replaced Turk Bulent Uygun, who joined them midway through last season and helped The Cheetahs go up from the seventh position where the team stood at the end of first phase.
Al Gharafa have the likes of Dutch attacking midfielder and FIFA World Cup runner-up Wesley Sneijder, Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi and Slovakian midfielder Vladimir Weiss, who missed most of last season with an injury.
Qatar SC, who languished at the bottom half early last season, did quite well ever since Qatari coach Abdulla Mubarak replaced Argentinian Gabriel Calderon. The Kings, who once stared at relegation, eventually ended up 10th.
Abdulla is known to bring the best out of his players and that helped the side a lot in last season’s QNB Stars League.
Qatar SC made an overhaul of their squad by replacing three foreign players. They roped in Hussein Ali, Alaeddin Al Dali and Brazilian Dodo while retaining Syrian Osama Omari.
Al Rayyan will definitely look to begin their campaign in the 2018-19 QNB Stars League season on a winning note when they take on Al Ahli on Sunday, 5th August. The kick-off is at 19:45 at the Al Sadd Stadium.
Al Rayyan are on a high after winning the season-opening Sheikh Jassim Cup by beating Al Duhail on Wednesday, 1st August.
The Lions were even in the title race initially last season, but faded out in the face of marauding run by eventual champions Al Duhail and finished behind runners-up Al Sadd.
Al Rayyan underwent a slump in form and had many injury setbacks as they exited in the group stage of AFC Champions League along with Al Gharafa, while Al Duhail and Al Sadd advanced to the knockout round.
This time around, Al Rayyan are under new coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena in place of Michael Laudrup and they would look to put all such disappointments behind.
They suffered a blow as Abderrazaq Hamdallah, their top scorer last season, is a doubtful starter as he is still nursing an injury. Al Rayyan may even look to replace the Moroccan striker. Mohsen Moutaouli moved to Al Ahli, while Uruguayan defender Gonzalo Vieira and South Korean Koh Myong-Jin stayed with them.
Al Ahli would be eager to improve on their ninth-place finish last season. The Brigadiers have bolstered their ranks with Dutch midfielder Nigel de Jong as well as medio Omid Ebrahimi and defender Mohammad Reza, both from Iran.
Qatar SC coach speaks
Qatar SC coach Abdulla Mubarak spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Gharafa.
“The preparatory period was very short. One month was not enough for the players to gear up for the season. However, we could make an elaborate plan for the tournament.
“We made the best use of our time. We played six friendly games and tried out three different combinations. All players were seen in action and I am so happy that they adapted well.
“We have tried to strike the right balance in our squad. We are up against a strong team (Al Gharafa) in the first match. But it is better to face Al Gharafa than facing Al Duhail at the very start of the season.
“Al Gharafa had put up a strong performance against CS Sfaxien (Tunisian club) at the Salalah tournament in Oman recently. But we are confident. We have set our targets and everyone in the club will be responsible to achieve them.
“My ambition is to put Qatar SC in the top rung of the QNB Stars League. To be among the top four is a difficult target to achieve. For that, we must double our efforts,” said Abdulla.
Al Gharafa coach Christian Gourcuff spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Qatar SC.
“All teams are staying focused, particularly at the beginning of the new season. And we are no different. We are concentrating much on our game against Qatar SC.
“We had a very good training camp in the Netherlands ahead of the start of the new season. And then, we played in a tournament in Salalah, Oman. We want to see how we can improve on our game further.
“In the league, you can get bad results sometimes. My life has always been about football, be it a player or coach. One or two games is not a period to assess a team’s overall level.
“I like to win every game. For that matter, all sides would like to win. You can win matches if you play good football. We hope to win Saturday’s match and thus make a strong start to our campaign.
“All my players are ready to take on Qatar SC,” said Gourcuff.
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Al Kharaitiyat coach Nassif Al Bayawi
Al Kharaitiyat coach Nassif Al Bayawi spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Sadd.
“We have great confidence in our players and we will try to take advantage of our strong points. We have analysed the strengths and weaknesses of other teams and we will try to put up a strong performance than we did last season.
“We don’t like to compare the teams in the QNB Stars League. This is new season and we must start afresh. We have a new team with some new players. We will explore the possibilities to improve our position. Nothing is impossible.
“We hope to achieve our target without much difficulty. We have good support from the club administration. I take this opportunity to thank my players for all the efforts they put up in the pre-season.
“This is going to be one of the tough seasons and many teams will suffer. In the QNB Stars League, only four teams play for top positions and the rest all belong to the lower tier. We are trying to be the best among the rest. That will depend on many factors. We lost (Rachid) Tiberkanine to Al Sailiya and we hope to make up for his absence,” said Al Bayawi.
Al Ahli coach Milan Macala
Al Ahli coach Milan Macala spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Rayyan.
“First of all, congratulations to our rivals Al Rayyan on winning the Sheikh Jassim Cup, the season opener in Qatar. From our side, it is not easy to begin the new season. We only started our preparations on 1st of July. From the outset, we had problems. It is a complicated situation.
“Our professional players joined the squad only late and I hope we put up a better performance than we did last season. I also hope they all gel well with the team. We are trying to find out the best combinations that suit us.
“The new players in the squad must adapt to the situation sooner. I am sure they have the potential to do so. If all things fall in place, we can seek a better position. The fifth or even fourth spot is not impossible for us.
“Basically, we have to compensate for the short preparatory period and get the side ready for the tougher battles,” said Macala.
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Al Rayyan coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena
Al Rayyan coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Ahli.
“We could not have sought a better start to the new season than we had with the Sheikh Jassim Cup triumph. That has tremendously boosted our players’ confidence. More importantly, beating Al Duhail has helped us stand in good stead.
“I would say the Sheikh Jassim Cup is a closed chapter now and we have to turn a new leaf with regard to the QNB Stars League. It’s going to be a difficult game against Al Ahli. They had played some tough games last season, I understand.
“However, I have confidence in my players. I do not want to make tall claims at the start of a fresh league season. We only had 20 to 25 days together to prepare for the tournament.
“You have to work and work, correct the mistakes and improve the game. At the moment, we are not worried about victory or defeat. We are in the process of building a formidable side.
“The first priority goes to the players. Coach comes only after that. I want our results to speak for us,” said Arruabarrena.
Al Shahania coach Jose Murcia
Al Shahania coach Jose Murcia spoke to the media ahead of their QNB Stars League Week 1 match against Al Duhail.
“We did a good job in the pre-season camp. We hope to build on our strong preparations and do a good job on our return to the QNB Stars League.
“We retained the services of all our overseas professional players even though we have added some new Qatari players to the squad. I hope they gel well with the foreign recruits sooner rather than later. I am sure they will combine well and lift their game when it matters the most.
“We will try to improve our game after every week and thus provide a good level of football. I have great confidence in our players. They are a spirited lot.
“I coached the team in the Second Division and know the players well. Even though the top flight is a different ball game altogether, we are upbeat about our prospects,” said Murcia.
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