The Peninsula
Al Gharafa coach Slavisa Jokanovic yesterday said his squad is playing its first match after a long break but his players will be aiming to pick up maximum points against Al Arabi today. Al Gharafa are placed fourth on the QNB Stars League points table with a tally of 28 after 17 rounds while Al Arabi are in fifth spot (24 points). “We had almost four-and-a-half months without playing an official match. After that, we started some individual exercises and fortunately we practised closer to the normal way during the past three weeks,” Jokanovic said.
“It is not easy to give a clear answer regarding the current level of readiness because we have not played for a long time, but we played some friendly matches to check the level we have reached. “All matches will be crucial. After facing Al Arabi, we will have four other games. Al Arabi match has great importance and can be seen as a six-point game, because the opponents are behind us in the fifth position with 24 points in the table. I hope we will be at our best and give our maximum efforts to win,” Jokanovic added.
“We will miss professionals Sofiane Hanni and Adlene Guedioura for various reasons. On the other side, we do not have many problems with injuries except Monkez Ali. Al Gharafa player Almahdi Ali said yesterday: “I thank all those who worked to resume football activity and special thanks to the medical teams who are fighting the coronavirus (Covid-19) in the frontline.” He added: “Regarding the return of action, all players at Al Gharafa are excited and the friendly matches prepared the team to resume the season. The next match is important for both teams.
We will do our best to win three points and widen the difference between us.” Ali explained: “Our target as players and as a team is to win all remaining matches, especially as we want to maintain our current position or achieve even better.” Meanwhile Al Arabi coach Heimir Hallgrimsson thanked the health workers for assisting in resuming the football season. “It is really good to be back. It was a difficult period for everyone, we are happy with the return of football action.
First of all, we would like to thank all those who made it happen,” Hallgrimsson said. “Normally, we would be preparing for a new season at this time, but now we are preparing to complete this season, which is a challenge and a difficult time as well. “I think we have many players who have benefited from this break. We have achieved a good level before the break and have performed well in many matches,” Hallgrimsson said. “We have young players who need time to progress so we can focus on their development. We have players who train so hard as well and I am excited to see how they will be when they are back in action.
It is a big game because of the difference in points between both teams in the table where Al Arabi are fifth with 24 points and Al Gharafa fourth with 28 points. So we have to work to achieve victory in this match. “It is really sad that we will be playing in the absence of fans due to the current circumstances, but they will watch us on TV. I hope they will be proud of our performance and we will do everything for that,” said Hallgrimsson. Al Arabi player Abdulrahman Anad said yesterday: “We still have five games to play which are all important. It is going to be a decisive game against Al Gharafa because it will give us a chance to be back among the top 4. We will do our best to grab the three points.”
He added: “During the break, we were training in groups as per the precautionary measures in the general plan and protocol. Thank God, we are among the most fit teams as we did not stop our training. So in my view, we used the break in a positive way. “For sure, our ambitions are high in the league competition. The top four is our target and we are able to achieve it. But we have to stay concentrated in every game and give all our potential on the pitch, God willing. “The circumstances are actually different. Before Al Arabi fans were the first to attend our games. They are No.1 for us. I hope we will be able to make them happy and fulfil their ambitions.”