Doha giants Al Sadd and former champions Al Rayyan clash in QNB Stars League (QSL) tie today - dubbed the Qatar Clasico - with the key match also bringing two big names of world football head-to-head.
Today’s Round 10 clash at Al Sadd Stadium marks Qatar debut for prominent French coach Laurent Blanc, who joined Al Rayyan earlier this week. The former PSG coach’s first challenge is to topple newly-crowned Amir Cup champions Al Sadd, coached by Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez.
Last year’s runners-up Al Rayyan have started the season poorly by their standards, standing at sixth on the points table with 13 points from three victories, four draws and two defeats.
Blanc, 55, admitted his new ranks will have a mountain to climb against the Xavi’s side as they bid to make a turnaround in their QSL campaign.
“The Al Sadd match will be difficult because they are the leaders. They have a coach (Xavi) who has a football philosophy as he played for many years with Barcelona,” the Frenchman told a pre-match press conference yesterday.
Blanc, said he likes to pick tough challenges as he explained the reason for his Qatar arrival.
“I came to Qatar because I love to develop myself and love new challenges. The task will not be easy, especially since I believe it is necessary to develop the performance of Al Rayyan, and this is my mission and that of my staff,” he said.
Blanc a big name in world of football: Xavi
Xavi, prior to the match yesterday said today’s Qatar Clasico will be one of the toughest challenges for his side this season. He also welcomed Blanc to Qatar.
“I have not played against him (Blanc) but I respect him a lot because he is a big name in the world of football. I welcome him to Qatar and QNB Stars League. It will be an honour for me to meet him again because he is a great player and coach,” said the Spaniard.
Al Sadd, who defeated Al Arabi 2-1 in the Amir Cup final on Friday, are almost flawless this QSL season topping the points table with 25 points from 8 wins and a draw, being the only unbeaten side this season.
Xavi, 40, stressed his team should continue the winning momentum and play for a victory against Al Rayyan.
“We have the Qatar Clasico. This is a very important match and means a lot to us. It is also important in terms of competition for the league because the gap between us and Al Rayyan is 12 points,” he said.
“Our goal is to win, to continue the series of victories, and we have not lost any match so far. Therefore, it is an important game for us and also for the fans,” said Xavi before adding his team must put aside the Amir Cup triumph going into the game.
“We have to change the mentality after winning the Amir Cup because this is a different tournament. We have to forget what happened in the Amir Cup final and focus on this match because it will be very difficult and complicated,” he said.
Players excited ahead of Qatar Clasico
While fans are eagerly awaiting the Qatar Clasico, players from both the teams are also excited ahead of the match, eyeing to give their best.
“The players will fight against Al Sadd in order to win the match and this game is always the most important for us. All our focus is on it and I will give everything I have to serve the team and I hope we will win this match,” Al Rayyan striker Yacine Brahimi said yesterday.
“We know the Al Sadd team and their players, it is a very good team. We have to focus on ourselves and the most important thing for us is the match against Al Sadd,” he added.
Al Sadd’s feared striker Baghdad Bounedjah termed today’s tie a ‘big match’.
“Our games with Al Rayyan are always enjoyable and strong, and the most focused team will reap match points. We thank God for winning the Amir Cup after defeating Al Arabi. Our focus is now on the Al Rayyan match, where victory is equivalent to six points,” said Bounedjah before hoping to play key role in his team’s win.
“I always strive to score in every match in order to help my team and the most important thing is to help the team stay on top of the league table.”
The match will kick off at 6:30pm.
