Al Wakrah players taking part in a training session.
Doha: Al Gharafa will be targeting nothing other than full points against Al Wakrah in today’s QNB Stars League Round 21 clash as The Cheetahs continue to fight for a place in next year’s AFC Champions League.
The Week-21 match which had been originally scheduled for April 6, was brought forward in view of Al Gharafa’s play-off with Uzbekistan’s FC AGMK in Doha on April 7, for a berth in this year’s AFC Champions League group stage.
The kick-off for today’s clash is set for at 5:00pm at the Al Gharafa Stadium.
Al Gharafa, who slipped from fourth to fifth position following their 1-3 loss to Al Ahli in Week 19, will be keen to storm back into the top-four bracket which will increase their chances of making back to back Champions League tournaments.
The Cheetahs, under Slavisa Jokanovic, have 30 points (nine wins, three draws and seven defeats) and have a goal difference of +7 (36 goals for and 29 against) and are currently one point behind fourth placed Qatar SC.
Three Qatari clubs, Al Duhail, Al Rayyan and Al Sadd who finished in that order in the 2019-20 season QNB Stars League final standings, will play in the West Asia group stage of this year’s Asian tournament, while fourth-placed Al Gharafa had to go into play-off for a place in the main draw.
The winner will join Group A featuring Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia, Shabab Al Ahli of the UAE and FC Istiklol of Tajikistan.
Jokanovic said he is aware of Al Wakrah’s capabilities, specially after they forced a one-all draw in the last QSL match against the title holders and unbeaten Al Sadd.
“Al Wakrah, under their Spanish coach (Marquez Lopez) always prefer to control the match, possession of the ball, and they often play with three defenders. But they had changed their style in their previous match, perhaps because they faced strong Al Sadd.
“They have a clear idea of the way they want to play and from the previous two games they got four points. Now, they are playing with more confidence and great desire, therefore this team could pose a great danger to us,” Jokanovic said.
“Meanwhile, our team is going through a difficult period in terms of results and performance. We did not provide the required level in the previous match (which we lost 1-3 to Al Ahli). We did not show the required desire and did not make the effort that would have allowed us to gain points.
“We made many mistakes and now we are required to perform in a different way. I am confident that our team is able to perform better. We must make greater efforts in the next match in order to return to the winning path,” said Jokanovic.
Al Wakrah are currently placed ninth in the standings with 19 points (five victories, four draws and 10 defeats). Their goal difference is -14 (15 goals for and 29 against).
Coach Lopez said his players are brimming with confidence following their fighting performances against the high-flying Al Sadd few days ago.
“Our players have an excellent mentality and they work hard and diligently to continue the series of positive results in the remaining league matches. And we hope to beat Al Gharafa.
“We want to beat Al Gharafa. After that, there is a break and we hope that the team gets the same number of points we got last season. In general, we are close to achieving our goal of survival in the top flight, but if the players think that the team is guaranteed to stay, then that will not be good for us. It should be ‘we are doing well, there are three matches left and we want to get the most points possible’,” said Marquez.
Al Gharafa had beaten Al Wakrah 1-0 in the first leg of this season’s QSL.
