Al Duhail’s players celebrate after scoring during a QNB Stars league match in this file photo.
Doha: Al Duhail coach Djamel Belmadi has urged ‘The Red Knights’ to continue seeking goals and avoid the tie-breaker as they prepare to take on an in-form Al Sadd team in the final of Qatar Cup.
The final to be played tomorrow at Al Sadd Stadium promises to be a thrilling battle as the top two QNB Stars League (QSL) sides come head-to-head for the coveted trophy.
Al Duhail, the QSL champions, however, will enter the crunch game with a psychological advantage as they are the only Qatari club which is yet to taste defeat this season.
Mostly, the Belmadi’s men tamed their oppositions in one-sided affairs after firing a flurry of goals.
In QSL only, they scored a whopping 86 goals from 22 games and thrashed Al Gharafa 6-1 in the Qatar Cup semi-final, following a hat-trick by feared striker Nam Tae-hee last week.
Belmadi said he would like to see the same performance from his players against Al Sadd in the final.
“We are keen to win this trophy. I like to see my team score more and more goals and win matches,” Al Duhail coach told a pre-final press conference yesterday.
However, the Algerian said he was expecting a thrilling action in the final.
“When the two big teams clash it promises to be an exciting battle. Al Sadd have world-class players such as Xavi (Hernandez) and a very good coach in Jesualdo Ferreira,” he said.
“But I have no worries. I have no fear. I can talk about tactics only after the game. I study my opponents and gives instructions to my players. And we are just ready for the matches,” he added.
Al Duhail were struggling to find the net in the first half against Al Gharafa in the final, but they returned as a different side in the second half hitting the ‘The Cheetahs’ for six. Belmadi credited a change in tactic for the big win.
“We changed our strategy after a goalless first half and got the rewards for it. We were successful in stopping them from building moves from behind. Then it was easy for us to press hard. And we avoided the mistakes we did in the opening session,” he said.
Unlike Al Duhail, Al Sadd had a different route to the final as they battled hard again Michael Laudrup’s Al Rayyan and managed victory in tiebreaker (4-2) after the game was tied 2-2 in regulation time.
Belmadi hoped his team will not let the match to reach to that stage and will try to seal win in real time.
“It is going to be a tight game. I wish it does not go into penalties,” he said.
Commenting on injured Youssef Msakni, Al Duhail coach said his team was missing the seasoned player.
“Of course, we will miss (Youssef) Msakni due to his knee injury. He has had his best season in Qatar overall. He not only excelled in scoring goals, but was also outstanding in giving assists. But I trust this squad. I cannot cry or complain that we do not have the services of Msakni. We have a lot of young players in the squad,” he said.
Meanwhile, Al Duhail midfielder Luis Martin said yesterday: “We have big respect for Al Sadd. It goes without saying that this is a very important game for both teams.”
He added: “Winning the trophy will be a big boost for us in the AFC Champions League’s knockout phase. Our success is because of our hard work. We have players who are together for many seasons. We are professionals and we have learnt from our mistakes. It is also about our desire to win. When you have 18 strong players, you can be unbeaten.”
