Six-time champions face Second Division outfit with eyes on Amir Cup semis
Published: 12 Mar 2020 - 12:00 am | Last Updated: 06 Nov 2021 - 11:47 am
Al Rayyan's Ahmad Abdel Maqsoud in action during a practice session yesterday.
Former champions Al Rayyan will be on guard today as they take on Second Division outfit Al Markhiya in their Amir Cup quarter-final clash at Al Sadd Stadium.
The Second Division side is the lone ranger in the group of eight, who have qualified for the quarter-final stage of the prestigious tournament.
The other seven are first division clubs of QNB Stars League.
Coach Diego Aguirre's side are in the second spot in the QSLstandings behind League leaders Al Duhail and the Uruguay tactician said there are no easy games for the taking in the Amir Cup.
"We are not underestimating Markhiya in any way. Somebody may be thinking that Markhiya is in Second Division, it will be an easy game but I don’t believe so. That is not the case,” said Aguirre.
The Al Rayyan coach said his team will not take the opponents lightly but take the field and perform at the highest level.
“We need to play with the same mentality like we did against Al Sadd three days ago. With that mentality we have a good chance to win. We need to respect all the opponents and not differentiate because they are in Second Division,” he added.
Al Rayyan defeated Al Sadd 1-0 and now have 38 points from 17 matches with leaders Al Duhail on 42.
Aguiree, having laid his hands on the Amir Cup eight years back as coach of Al Rayyan, wants to recreate the same magic in this year’s edition.
“The Amir Cup is important, yes I remember the moment, I remember eight years ago,” said Aguiree.
“May be I have become more experienced I know how it feels to play in this kind of tournament and it is nice to play before a full stadium,” he added.
Al Rayyan he said have set their sights on reaching the final.
“For us the target is to reach the final. It is nice to close the season with this game playing in front of a full stadium. Will hope and try our best to reach the final and win the trophy, it is very important and we have a good chance,” he said.
Meanwhile, Al Markhiya assistant coach Yasin Mishuai said they want to go as far as they can.
“We had some serious preparations. Players know what to except from a good team like Al Rayyan. We have to be at our best, if we want to achieve something and show we are a good team,” Yasin said. “We hope to go as far as we can. We would not say we are a better team but we are young team in the Second Division. We will do everything possible to go as far as we can. If we reach the final, we will be more than happy and like the Al Gharafa game, everything is possible.”
The Second Division team beat Al Gharafa 1-0 to reach the quarter-finals pulling off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament.
“It’s one game, it’s a different game compared to the league game," Yasin added. “Yes, we watched a lot of Al Rayyan videos and we saw they play differently in different games. We would not concentrate on one player but we will go into this as a team effort. If we concentrate on one player, then we leave other players free. So we have to get the basics right and we have to be disciplined like we were in the Gharafa game. We will have our chances. Each player has to give 100 percent effort and that is the key.”
Yasin said his players will have to checkmate the Al Rayyan players and curtail them and not allowing them lot of space.
"We should not allow them space and give them chances to score. They have good players and are a good team, so we will have to give 100 per cent effort," Yasin said.
