Al Gharafa head coach Andrea Stramaccioni said their experience in the AFC Champions League 2022 will serve as motivation for his young side to improve and return stronger.
Al Gharafa made exit from the tournament following the group stage, which they ended after suffering a 4-2 defeat by Ahal FC on Tuesday night.
“All the local players in our team come from our academy. This is very important for us because this is our project and the club has put a lot of work behind developing the youth players. If you look at the players who played for Al Gharafa, you will see we have a bright future,” said Stramaccioni.
The Qataris started the campaign on a bright note but slowly faded after losing the last three matches to finish third in Group C.
“We are slowly closing the gap on the two top clubs in Qatar. The club is very proud of our academy players and I’m happy to be here to help them develop this project. The AFC Champions League is the beginning of something good for us. The experience will help the young players get better and better.”
Meanwhile, Ahal FC head coach Rovshen Muhadov said their victory over Al Gharafa will be a springboard for the club and players to improve.
It was the club’s first win of the campaign which saw them finish last in Group C on four points, one behind Al Gharafa.
Muhadov praised his players for ending the difficult campaign on a winning note: “Congratulations to my players. This was a good competition for them to learn and gain new experiences. They played well and after creating chance, they scored good goals.
“Our main goal was to gain experience and to be better. We analysed every match and slowly you can see improvements. Now we will return and hopefully play in this competition in the future as a better and more experienced team.”
“Our main goal was to gain experience and to be better. We analysed every match and slowly you can see improvements."
