Al Rayyan look to stop all-conquering Al Duhail SC
Doha: Al Duhail SC and Al Rayyan have been travelling on totally different roads this season.
While Djamel Belmadi’s Duhail, the all-conquering record-setters, were flying from the world go, Michael Laudrup’s Rayyan have huffed and puffed.
But such is the beauty and levelling ability of football that one moment of magic, or one misplaced pass, a simple error in judgement or a mistimed tackle at the Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday is enough to change all that. The grandeur of the occasion makes sure it does.
For Belmadi and Duhail it’s yet another chance to reiterate their supremacy and end the season on a perfect note while for Laudrup and Rayyan it’s a golden opportunity for redemption.
Duhail started the season with a defeat to Al Sadd in the Sheikh Jassim Cup last September but have never looked back since then. They have gone from strength to strength and their latest conquest, the 4-1 thrashing of UAE champions Al Ain in the AFC Champions League pre-quarterfinal last week, was good enough to induce fear in rivals’ minds.
Belmadi said his team was ready for the final assault.
“It’s the last game of the season and this amazing competition is the best way to finish the season,” said Belmadi at the pre-match press conference. “Reaching the final is very good. But we want to win it. Out opponents too have same ambition, but we are ready for this last game.”
The Algerian coach said his team’s preparation was mainly focused on recovery as they did not have much time after the Al Ain match.
“Our main focus was recovering from strains of the last match. Of course, we had some meetings about what we have achieved until now. But the season is not finished and it could be a problem if we are not well prepared for this game.
“We are a big club and for a big club if you do not win titles it’s not enough. They will also do their best, so we expect a difficult game.
“They have some good players, mainly (Rodrigo) Tabata, Sebastian (Soria) and (Mouhcine) Moutouali, but we are used to playing big teams,” said Belmadi.
Another factor that Rayyan would be happy to bank on is their passionate fans, but Belmadi said even though they have a strong fan base, his team is not too bothered about it.
“Fans can help and they have amazing fans. But they cannot win the game for you,” said Belmadi.
While Belmadi and co have been winning all the accolades including at the Qatar Football Association’s end of the season ceremony on Thursday, Rayyan have been plagued with inconsistency.
They started all right in the QNB Stars League and did not let Duhail out of sight for a while before losing their focus.
They had an opportunity to win a trophy in the QSL Cup, but lost to Al Gharafa in the final. Even more disappointing was the group stage exit in the AFC Champions League while they also lost to Al Sadd in the semifinal of the Qatar Cup.
Laudrup knows it’s a tough ask, but he believes he has the aces up his sleeve for that.
“Of course we know it will be very difficult. Duhail have had a fantastic season, they have been winning everything. But like Belmadi earlier pointed out, in players such as Tabata and Soria they have the ammunition to silence Duhail while the earlier meeting between the two sides in the league which ended in a thrilling 3-3 draw will also give Laudrup something to look forward.
“We lost the title last year to Al Sadd in the last few minutes, so we hope to win it tomorrow,” said team captain Tabata. “It will be a difficult game. But tomorrow I trust in my team and I hope everybody make a good performance.”
Laudrup said continuity was the secret of Duhail’s success.
“They have some very good players who have been playing together for a long time.
“Karim Boudiaf, Luiz Martin, Ismael Mohamed, Nam Tae-Hee, Mohammed Moosa, Youssef Msakni, Khalid Muftah, all these players have been playing for them for a long time. They know exactly what they are going to do and it makes it difficult for opponents,” said Laudrup.
All he needs to do now is to find a way to stop them.
