Doha: Al Sadd will aim to retain the Sheikh Jassim Cup when they take on Lekhwiya in the one-off match at the recently-renovated Hamad bin Khalifa Stadium here today.
The clash to be played at the home ground of Al Ahli Club will kick off at 6pm.
The Sheikh Jassim Cup is an annual cup competition in Qatar held between the winners of the Qatar Stars League (QSL) which is Lekhwiya and the Emir Cup champions which is Al Sadd.
For Al Sadd coach Jesualdo Ferreira, who joined the club midway into the season, a win today will give him a chance to lay hands on his first trophy in Qatar.
The Portuguese joined the club in November and is delighted that his club will playing in what he termed as an ‘unique’ match.
“I am happy the match is going to be played at this time because at the beginning of the season I wasn’t the coach of the team,” Ferreira, said while talking to reporters on the eve of the match.
Ferreira said as a trainer he favours the idea of his team playing continuously and is against any breaks.
“We have not played a competitive match since January 3,” added the 69-year old trainer.
“For me football is for playing and not resting, my player’s morale is high and we are confident of winning on Thursday.”
Ferreira said the absence of five players currently doing duty for Qatar in the AFC U23 Championship will not be felt much as his team has adequate bench strength. “It is good both ways and a proud moment for us, we are happy to have five players in the national team,” he added.
Ferreira added that the match will in no way have an effect on the Qatar Stars League positions.
Currently Al Sadd are in fourth place while Lekhwiya are in third spot after Round 15 matches.
Lekhwiya, will be looking for revenge having lost in the final last year.
Al Sadd regained the Sheikh Jassim Cup last year defeating Lekhwiya 3-2.
Coach Djmel Belmadi side will miss two players Ahmed Yasser and Mohammed Muntari, who are with the Qatar U23 national team taking part in the AFC U23 Championship.
Belmadi said his team had played many matches without them in the past.
“We will miss them, we have played many games with or with them,” Belmadi said. The Lekhwiya trainer favoured the Cup to be played at the start of the season:.
“The Cup could have been at the beginning of the season.
“The match is taking place at a time when fans are attending the AFC U23 Championship but it doesn’t affect us,” Belmadi said in response to another question.
“The break in the (QSL) League has no bearing in the performance of my team,” he added.
Khalid Muftah, Lekhwiya captain opined that the ongoing AFC U23 Championship will attract fans to the stadium.
He said officials and players of the U23 teams, who are in Qatar will be interested to attend the game.
“When there are lots of fans one may play better and the level of performance are higher,” Khalid said.
