Al Rayyan skipper Rodrigo Tabata (right) and his team-mates look on while Al Sadd players celebrate after scoring a goal during their Qatar Stars League Round-25 match played at Al Sadd Stadium on Sunday. Al Rayyan will take on Al Arabi in their round 25
Eyeing to retain their third spot, Michael Laudrup’s Al Rayyan will take on Al Arabi in their round 25 clash of the Qatar Stars League (QSL), desperate to earn full points at Al Sadd Stadium tomorrow.
Dubbed as the Match-of-the-Week, the derby holds a lot of importance for both the sides who faced heavy defeats in their previous round games.
Al Rayyan suffered a 4-1 thrashing against title-contenders Al Sadd in Qatar Clasico while relegation-threatened Al Shahania handed a similar pounding to Al Arabi, following a stunning display.
The 2015-16 champions Al Rayyan need full points against 10th-placed Al Arabi to consolidate their third position. With a total of 47 points, the Laudrup’s side is just two points ahead of fourth-placed El Jaish, who will be meeting Al Gharafa in their next match.
Al Rayyan will have to enter the challenge of retaining their third place without two key midfielders – Daniel Goumou, who was red carded in Al Sadd clash and injured South Korean midfielder Koh Myong-jin. Laudrup may also elect to make changes in defense and attack especially with a tough away assignment coming up against Persepolis in the AFC Champions League.
Al Arabi, who are in danger of slipping into the relegation zone if they lose their next two games of the season, have been patchy in the league. However, the Osvaldo Olivera’s team is desperate for a win too and seemed confident of doing well against Al Rayyan.
Defender Ali Jasimi said his side has what it takes to beat Al Rayyan.
“Matches against Al Rayyan are always exciting for players and fans. It will be a tough game for both sides,” he said in an interview.
“We fell to a 3-0 defeat during the first half of the season to Al Rayyan and we are looking to get revenge (on Thursday). With the league position we are in, we desperately need the points,” said the young defender.
Jasimi insisted that his side have to focus on the game ahead in order to grab all three points.
“Whatever issues that we have in the club should be put aside. Al Arabi has to come together in order to get back to winning ways and have a good performance against Al Rayyan.”
“It was a total shock to lose 4-1 to Al Shahania; we certainly lacked luck in the game. Now we have to turn our attention to Al Rayyan and hope we can cause those problems” added Jasimi.
“Everyone in the squad is concerned about the position Al Arabi is in, we now need to get two strong results to avoid this fate this is what we have to do now for the end of the season,” he further said.
