Relegation battle the focus as Qatar SC face Ahli

Qatar Sports Club coach Sebastiao Lazaroni has described today’s match against Al Ahli as a must-win game.
The Kings moved to within four points of safety after beating Al Sadd 1-0 in round 18 and Lazaroni says his players must build on that result with a positive display against Ahli.
“It’ll be a tough game but we showed our capabilities against Al Sadd,” said Lazaroni. “We know our place in the QSL is on the line. It’s vital we take the three points.
“We know it will be difficult to survive but we are working very hard to achieve our objective. I’ve been in situations like this before and I know we’re capable of getting out of it.”
Lazaroni said the Brigadeers have plenty of quality in their starting 11.
“They have some exciting players, guys like Meshal Abdullah and Younes Ali. We are fully aware of their potential. I’m expecting a quality game.”
Qatar Sports Club midfielder Ibrahim Jamal said: “Every game is crucial for us between now and the end of the season. The spirit in the squad is good after the Sadd game and we need to build on that performance. It’s important we keep picking up good results.”
Ahli’s assistant coach Stanislav Moravec said his side were prepared for a stern test. Ahli go into the game on the back of a 1-1 draw with Al Kharaitiyat and currently sit in 11th place, just five points ahead of Qatar Sports Club.
“We know our opponents are on fire after their win against Al Sadd, so we will need to be on top of our game. The atmosphere in our squad is good at the moment and we’re feeling confident going into the game.
“This is a typical relegation six pointer. A win here will put a lot of pressure on the teams around us. Every point counts at this stage of the season.”
Ahli forward Mouhcine Iajour, a former Qatar Sports Club player, said: “It will be a difficult game but we are confident. It’s a special game for me and I hope I can put one over my old team.”  Now to see what happens during the game.

Coach Ferreira wants inconsistent Al Sadd to avoid mistakes and get back to winning ways when they take on Al Khor today
Al Sadd will look to get back to winning ways when they take on Al Khor today. They have now gone for four matches without a win, having lost two of those too. Sadd coach Jesualdo Ferreira said that his team was looking to avoid the mistakes they had done in their recent matches. “Al Khor game will be very difficult and similar to all the other games. We will continue on the same prominent performance but we will try to avoid the mistakes we committed previously and get the result we seek,” said Ferreira at the pre-match press conference.
He added: “As I mentioned before, all teams enter their matches versus Al Sadd with huge spirit and excitement, which make them play even better against us.”
Ferreira said that the lack of goals, as well as the repeated mistakes is the main reason for the defeats. He continued: “I am a professional coach and Al Sadd is a big club. Result will definitely come to us as the current circumstances are natural. We are on the right track both technically and administratively.”
Commenting on both defeats to Al Jazira and Qatar SC, he said: “It is so unfortunate when you talk about me in the event of losing, while people only speak about the players in the event of winning. This happens in all leagues with no logic explanation.”
Meanwhile Khor are eager to avoid getting involved in the relegation battle. “The victory of Qatar Sports Club over Al Sadd in the previous round will make the mission of Al Khor even more difficult because Al Sadd refuses to lose two consecutive games,” Said Al Khor coach Jead Fernandez during the pre-match press conference.
“I have watched the previous match between Qatar SC and Al Sadd, where Al Sadd presented distinguished and strong performance but lacked the luck,” he said.
Commenting on stepping away from the relegation zone, he said: “According to calculations and figures we are still one of those teams playing for survival and things could change real fast. In the previous rounds, we have achieved some victories before losing to Al Rayyan recently. There are 4 to 5 teams struggling to avoid relegation including Al Khor as we have to win at least two games.”

Today’s fixtures
At 4:45pm
Al Khor vs Al Sadd
Qatar SC Al Ahli
At 7:15pm   
Umm Salal vs Al Sailiya