Al Sadd's Akram Afif (right) and Hassan Al Haydos in action during a training sessioan, yesterday.
Doha, Qatar: Al Sadd and Al Gharafa are set to clash in a high-profile Expo Stars League encounter today which could lift either one of the teams to the top of the standings, at least until tomorrow.
The match-up will take place at the Khalifa International Stadium, with kick-off scheduled for 6 pm.
After four weeks of action, Al Sadd occupy the third spot in the league standings, boasting 10 points from three wins and one draw, while Al Gharafa share the same number of points and sit in second place, with a slightly higher goal tally of 13 compared to Al Sadd's 10. Al Rayyan are at the top of the standings with 12 points.
Al Gharafa coach Pedro Martins knows his team will have to face a one of the strongest opponents in the League in 16-time champions Al Sadd, but said his men are ready for the task.
“We are ready to play this important match against one of the strong contenders to win the league title. Our team is going into the match with a different strategy, especially since we also want to compete for the league title, like Al Sadd," Martins said.
Al Gharafa are in high spirits following last week's 3-2 win over the reigning champions Al Duhail, but Martins said today's match will pose a bigger threat.
“Al Sadd are stronger than Al Duhail in some aspects and vice-versa. They are two big teams and we succeeded in defeating one of them and that was important for us. We will be ready and we have the desire to continue achieving successes this season," Martins said.
Al Sadd, on the other hand, will aim to maintain their winning streak as they strive to close the gap with table-toppers Al Rayyan.
Al Sadd coach Bruno Miguel said today's match will be open for both teams.
“When we face Al Gharafa, it will definitely be an open match and both teams will play to win. Al Gharafa players are motivated because of the last match in which they scored the winning goal in the last moments against Al Duhail," Miguel said.
“It will be a difficult match for us, but I am sure it will also be difficult for Al Gharafa. We won our last match against Qatar SC and I think we deserved to win despite some complicated moments during the match. But this is football,"Miguel added.
The league's top scorer, Yacine Brahimi, with seven goals to his name, leads Al Gharafa's charge, supported by star players in the calibre of Farid Boulaya, Ferjani Sassi, Ahmed Alaaeldin, and Yohan Boli.
Al Sadd will rely on their standout players, including Akram Afif, Hassan Al Haydous, Mateus Uribe, and Boualem Khoukhi, with the expectation of Baghdad Bounedjah and Guilherme Torres joining the squad once they recover from their injuries.
If they return, it will only add to Al Gharafa's worries, but even without them, the encounter has all the ingredients of a blockbuster clash.
In other matches today, Al Markhiya face am uphill task against title holders Al Duhail at Al Janoub Stadium (8:00pm) while Al Arabi take on Qatar SC at Al Thumama Stadium (8:00pm).
