Al Duhail coach Nabil Maaloul (right) during a pre-match press conference in Doha.
DOHA: Al Duhail are hoping for a successful return to the QNB Stars League (QSL) following their loss in the AFC Champions League quarter-finals earlier this week.
Al Duhail, seeking to defend their QSL title, will take on Al Gharafa today at their home turf, eyeing victory after their loss to Iran’s Persepolis in the quarter-finals.
“It is a tough game, especially psychologically, after our AFC Champions League exit in the quarter-final stage. We are trying to boost the morale of the players because, despite the defeat, we were closer to the next round,” said Al Duhail coach Nabil Maaloul.
“Now we are in the QSL and we are still missing Luis Martin due to his injury. But we have a strong pool of young players who can satisfy our fans by helping win the league championship,” said the coach.
“The most important thing we are thinking about now is the result of the game against Al Gharafa although we have to be at our best. We talked a lot to the players in order to help them get out of the psychological blow,” he said.
Maaloul said mistakes cost his team dearly in the loss against Persepolis.
“Against Persepolis, we put our spearhead Yousef El Arabi on the bench because we had a plan in place and that succeeded in the first half when we pushed Almoez Ali against the Iranian team’s defence.
“Our plan surprised the rivals, but individual mistakes in the second half deprived us of success. I have a strong squad at my disposal and it will come good,” said Maaloul.
Meanwhile, Al Gharafa coach Christian Gourcuff said his team will have to give it’s best to achieve the desirable results against champions Al Duhail.
“We did not deserve to lose to Umm Salal in the last round in terms of performance. I have tried my best to prepare the team in a better way. We had better avoid the mistakes we committed against Umm Salal,” he said.
“We will sorely miss the services of Dutch star Wesley Schneider, who will need around a month to recover from a muscle injury,” said Gourcuff.
