Mesaimeer coach Dragan Tadic during a press conference held in Doha yesterday. Picture: Hussein Sayed
Doha: Mesaimeer coach Dragan Tadic has a piece of advice for his players ahead of today’s Emir Cup clash against Al Ahli is: enjoy the game and positive results will follow.
Speaking on the eve of the clash, Tadic yesterday said at a pre-event press conference: “I have told my players to enjoy what you do on the field of play. If you play under pressure, you cannot give hundred percent in football so enjoy for yourself, enjoy for your team and make the spectators happy.”
Qatargas League team Mesaimeer failed to qualify for this next season’s QSL and thus will be aiming to finish the Emir Cup on a high note.
Tadic’s side finished third in the 12-team Qatargas Second Division and thus are keen to start afresh in the Emir Cup.
The Croatian tactician, who has been with the club from the 2015 season, said playing in the Qatargas League is a completely different thing to the challenge one faces in the knock out event like the Emir Cup.
“We have to adopt different plans for a knockout tournament like the Emir Cup. We must be cautious in the Emir Cup as one mistake can spell doom,” Tadic warned.
“There’s no chance for a recovery. In the Emir Cup, the situation demands that you do not play an open game and expose yourselves to too much risk. It is specific situation and a necessity, which you must follow in the knockout tournament,” he added.
“We have a difficult task but we are ready for the challenge. We will give our best and qualify for the second round which is our target. We will show our best performance,” Tadic added.
Asked if any upsets are on the cards in the Emir Cup, Tadic said nothing could be ruled out.
“Football is a beautiful game as there are no favourities. Any team can win the match. Football is full of surprises. When you are not a big team but if have quality, you can beat any team. I don’t think of any match in the future but we are just concentrating on the present match. Every game is important,” he said.
Tadic is not new to upsets in the Emir Cup. Last year the Qatargas League side eliminated eight-time winners Al Arabi to qualify for the third round of the tournament. The coach hopes to pass on some of his experiences of winning two Cup finals to his players.
“During my career, I won two Cups and I have advised them how to handle the situation in the knockout tournament,” Tadic said.
“Everybody wants to win the championship. We are under less pressure then Al Ahli. We aim to give a good and decent performance and quality for the next stage. Al Ahli are under lot of pressure then us. Our morale is very high and we are well prepared,” Mesaimeer player Ahmed Mubarak said.
Al Ahli, which finished ninth in the QSL, are aiming to dictate terms from the start, coach Yousef Ahmed said yesterday.
“We aim to impose our style of play on our opponents. We want to be the dominate team on the field. We do not want to play second fiddle. By imposing our style of play we aim to win and qualify for the next round,” Ahmed said.
The winner of the match between Al Ahli and Mesaimeer will take on Al Sailiya in the next round match, with a possible clash with Al Gharafa in the quarter-finals.
In the other match today, Qatar SC clash with Al Wakra with Al Arabi waiting for the winner in the pre-quarters. The winner will take on Al Rayyan in the last-eight stage.
The Emir Cup competition is contested by QSL and Qatargas Second Division clubs.
The country’s most popular football event will be played in five phases: The second round clashes will take place today and tomorrow; the third round on April 28 and 29, the fourth round on May 3 and 4, the semi-finals on May 11 and 12.
The final will be played on May 19, Qatar Football Association (QFA) said. The first four finishers in the QSL have earned a place in the quarter-finals, while the remaining eight teams will feature in the pre-quarters and third round.
Al Sadd is one of the four teams which has been seeded directly into the quarter-finals along with QSL champions Al Duhail, Al Rayyan and Al Gharafa.
Meanwhile, QSL champions Al Duhail will be looking to extend their impressive run in the Emir Cup. Seeded in the quarter-finals, Djamel Belmadi’s side will be awaiting the results of the second round and pre-quarters to know their opponents.
The winner of the third second-round clash between Al Kharaitiyat and Al Shahaniya faces Umm Salal in the pre-quarter-final with Al Duhail clash next on the cards.
