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Tribune News Network
DOHA
Al Rayyan Club are facing a couple of injury worries ahead of the Qatar Clasico against Al Sadd Club.
The Week 6 thriller is scheduled at 5.55pm on Saturday at the Al Sadd Stadium.
Al Rayyan coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena said his team was pitted against one of the best teams in Asia but they would play the match they know the best.
"We are going to play an important game. We will face one of the best teams in the QNB Stars League, which is a strong competition in Asia. We respect Al Sadd, but we will play the game in our style. We hope to succeed.
"I also hope the game will be played in good atmosphere, true to the spirit of Qatar Clasico and fans will enjoy the action when both teams fight it out on the field.
"We are at the top of standings now, which means we have to win the games to stay there. I do not have anything to worry about before the game, but I know we're also going to face one of the best teams in Asia. We know their strengths and weaknesses, but we will primarily focus on our ability," the coach added.
"Our new Brazilian striker Luca is a doubtful starter. So is injured defender Gonzalo Vieira," Rodolfo informed.
Gharafa rue lost chance
Al Gharafa Club are still ruing the lost chance against Umm Salal. Their coach Christian Gourcuff, talking about the match against defending champions Al Duhail, said in a press conference,"We did not deserve to lose to Umm Salal in the last round in terms of performance. I tried my best to prepare the team in a better way. We need to avoid the mistakes we committed against Umm Salal.
"We will try to play as we did during our 1-1 draw with Al Sadd. I had watched Al Duhail's AFC Champions League match against Iran's Persepolis and they were close to winning it and progressing to the semi-finals. So we know we must be at our best.
"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.
