QSL – FIVE THINGS LEARNT FROM ROUND 19

SMELL OF TITLE
Lekhwiya took a big stride towards title after they defeated Al Khor 6-0 and promoted Al Shahaniya held challengers Al Sadd 1-1. The victory saw the Cops draw five points clear on top. Twenty one points are still at stake and coach Djamel Belmadi does not believe that his team enjoys a clear edge. But the Algerian’s smiling face proved that he was already smelling the title. A win against in-form Al Rayyan on Friday will help his men inch closer.
A MATCH TO FORGET
Al Sadd players may be eager to forget the match against promoted Al Shahaniya soon even though it will be easier said than done. They dropped two points in the 1-1 draw to drift further away from leaders Lekhwiya. Equally worrying for coach Jesualdo Ferreira are the red cards to his three key players — Baghdad Bounedjah, Ibrahim Majed and Pedro Miguel — which will rule them out for more games than one if the disciplinary committee acts tough on them following the ugly brawl against Shahaniya.
NEVER SAY DIE
Muaither put up a spirited show against Al Arabi to take home a point. With all matches involving the six bottom teams ending in draws, the single point may not count much, but Muaither’s performance was commendable. Their 1-1 draw, which followed the 3-1 win over Al Wakrah, proved that Philippe
Birol’s men were not ready to give up. Their new recruits — Kisito Yessoh, Minori Sato and Ahmed Yasin — all look like good buys and Birol is sure to count on them a lot.
TURNAROUND
Al Sailiya had stuttered mostly in the first phase, collecting just 12 points from 13 matches. But Sami Trabelsi’s men look capable of going up the ladder if their performance in the 1-1 draw against El Jaish is anything to go by. Sailiya’s three new signings, Uzbek duo of Temurkhuja Abdukholiqov and Sanjar Shaakhmedov, and Romanian winger Valentin Lazar, give them a transformed look. Sailiya would rue the missed chances in the first half, a point agreed by Soldiers coach Sabri Lamouchi. But the performance should give them the confidence to fight tooth and nail when they take on strugglers Al Kharaitiyat.
STEADY SHOW
Al Rayyan’s Abdulmajeed Enad grabbed his chances in the absence of regular players in the new year and performed flawlessly to make it to the national team in the recent friendly against Moldova. The 23-year-old, who can play both as a midfielder and left-back, has scored three goals in the last four matches. He had netted the Lions’ lone goal in their win over Al Kharaitiyat while he scored the opener in their 5-1 victory over Al Ahli last week. It should give Michael Laudrup a welcome selection headache when he picks the team for Friday’s big match against Lekhwiya.