(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Al Gharafa will host Al Shamal in the opening match of the new season of the QNB Stars League in a 6:05pm kickoff on Saturday.
The 2021-2022 season is expected showcase high-quality football as much as it is expected to be hectic, with the calendar scheduled to be completed by mid-March 2022 to allow players to join their national teams April 1.
Al Gharafa had finished a creditable fourth last season, behind champions Al Sadd, Al Duhail and Al Rayyan in that order. The Cheetahs, then under Serb Slavisa Jokanovic, thus ensured a berth in the Qatar Cup and a possible place in AFC Champions League.
Al Gharafa, a traditional powerhouse in Qatar football with many titles and honours to their credit, will embark on the new season on a confident note and under new coach, Italian Andrea Stramaccioni, who was appointed recently.
“I am satisfied with our preparation in the pre-season training sessions. Everyone has made a great effort over the past few weeks. It is good to be surrounded by people who have the desire to give their best and strive to develop consistently. I am not talking here about players alone but everyone in the backroom staff and management who contributed in the pre-season training,” Stramaccioni said at the pre-match press conference.
On the other hand, Al Shamal are back in the First Division after a gap of six seasons. They won the Second Division League last season (2020-2021) to qualify for the top flight.
Al Shamal, who retained Moroccan coach Hisham Jadrane, will be facing a new challenge this time and there will be no option for them, but to work hard and diligently in order to compete strongly against teams that have much experience in the competition.
Al Gharafa have an upper hand, but Al Shamal had made a strong start to the season by holding Al Ahli to a 2-2 draw in Round 1 of the Ooredoo Cup last weekend.
Al Gharafa boast of players like Sofiane Hanni, Jonathan Kodjia, Mehdi Tahrat, Homam Al Ameen and goalkeeper Yousef Hassan, while Al Shamal have the likes of Jeison Medina, Baha Faisal, Ali Awad, Mohamed El Sayed (Jeddo) and goalkeeper Hassan Idriss.
“We want to prove to everyone that Al Shamal did not come into the league by chance, but rather on merit. To achieve this goal, our preparations were strong through the overseas camp in Turkey,” Jadrane said in the pre-match press conference yesterday.
Umm Salal face Al Rayyan, while Qatar SC take on Al Ahli in the two other matches today, both of which will start at 8:20pm.
Umm Salal, who finished 10th in the last two seasons, would certainly want to avoid the threat of relegation. The Orange Fortress, who were under Moroccan coach Aziz Ben Askar, even stared at danger at one stage and ended up with 21 points, four more than Al Khor, who had to play the Relegation Play-Off.
This season, Umm Salal have made many changes as they seek a turnaround in their fortunes.
They recruited Brazilian coach Sergio Farias and new professional players with the aim of putting behind the disappointments and improving their image that has taken a beating.
“The start of the new season will be against a big and strong team, Al Rayyan. We'll enter the match knowing we must be mentally and physically focused. We've prepared well. We played five friendly matches during the training camp,” Farias said.
Meanwhile, Al Rayyan are looking forward to a better season than they had in 2020-2021 where, after raising hopes of winning titles, they had to settle for the third place in the QNB Stars League.
French coach Laurent Blanc, whose services have been retained, realizes that the task will not be easy at all, so Al Rayyan are racing against time to finish their signings to strengthen the squad with the best players before the start of the league championship.
“I am not afraid of anything. If you feel afraid at first, you have to change your job. I feel playing football is very motivating and fun. We, at Al Rayyan, have the motivation and desire to play matches for wins. I cannot talk about my goal at the present time as I am waiting for more players to join during the next stage in order to complete the team's roster,” Blanc said.
At Al Wakrah, Qatar SC face Al Ahli with Brazilian Ze Ricardo at the helm for the Kings, while the latter have retained Montenegrin coach Nebojsa Jovovic.
Qatar SC achieved some good results last season, missing out on it narrowly and ended up sixth with 32 points.
Qatar SC last won the title in 2003, and would seek to make a turnaround in their fortunes. They have made a couple of big signings – Spaniard Javi Martinez and Algerian Djamel Belamri.
And Qatar SC had made a positive start to the season by beating Al Khor 2-1 in Round 1 of the Ooredoo Cup.
Al Ahli missed out on a chance to play the AFC Champions League despite making a strong start last season.
The Brigadiers and Al Gharafa both ended up with 33 points, but The Cheetahs were placed fourth on better goal difference.
Saturday's matches
6:05pm Al Gharafa vs Al Shamal, Al Gharafa Stadium
8:20pm Qatar SC vs Al Ahli, Al Wakrah Club
8:20pm Umm Salal vs Al Rayyan, Al Gharafa Stadium
Last updated: September 10 2021 10:32 PM
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