The Peninsula
Doha, Qatar - Qatari football giants Al Duhail will look to maintain their quality run as they take on Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal in the second round of AFC Champions League (ACL) while Al Sadd will take on Persepolis in what will be a repeat of the 2018 semi-final
Al Duhail’s Group C fixture will kick off at the King Saud University Stadium in Saudi capital at 6.45pm Qatar time while hosts Al Sadd meet their Iranian counterparts in Group D at the same time.
Al Duhail had defeated Iran’s Esteghlal 3-0 in their opener in Doha to lead the group, while Al Hilal beat Al Ain 1-0.
Al Duhail’s Portuguese coach Rui Faria is targeting a good outcome for his team in this year’s premier continental competition.
They are leading the group with three points, followed by Al Hilal (three), Al Ain (0) and Esteghlal (0).
New recruit and Moroccan defender Mehdi Benatia, last two seasons’ QNB Stars League top scorer Yousef El Arabi and Ali Afif scored Al Duhail’s goals against Esteghlal, whereas, Mohammed Al Shalhoub netted the winner for Al Hilal against Al Ain.
Al Duhail have shown glimpses of the form that saw them deliver a record-equalling nine-match winning run in the 2018 AFC Champions League. The Qatari side cruised past Esteghlal in a dominant 3-0 win in matchday one.
However, they will again be without AFC Asian Cup winning pair Almoez Ali and Assem Madibo who are nurturing injuries, but Moroccan striker El Arabi, facing his former club, will look to continue the side’s run of scoring in each of their last 11 games in the competition.
Al Duhail are expected to take the field with a full squad that includes goalkeeper Amine Lecomte, Benatia, Ahmed Yasser, Murad Naji, Sultan Al Breik, Bassam Al Rawi, Luis Martin, Paolo Edmilson, Karim Boudiaf, Shoya Nakajima.
The much-experienced Benatia and Nakajima are proving to be valuable winter additions to the Al Duhail ranks.
Al Hilal have a star-studded line-up comprising the likes of Abdullah Al Mayouf, Al Shalhoub, Yasser Al Shahrani, overseas recruits Sebastian Giovinco, Andre Carrillo and Jonathan Soriano.
Meanwhile, Al Sadd’s Portuguese coach Jesualdo Ferreira knows the strengths and weaknesses of Persepolis very well. The Wolves, who are leading the QSL table at the moment, are sure to go all out and will look to capitalise on the home advantage.
Al Sadd are last in Group D, which is led by Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli. Uzbekistan’s Pakhtakor and Persepolis are second and third respectively.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference yesterday, Al Sadd’s midfielder Tareq Salman said: “Our goal is to be focused on Persepolis so that we can get the win. We know the Iranian team very well after facing them in the last edition. We are looking to get our first three points of this year.”
Al Sadd have players in the calibre of QSL top scorer and Algerian ace Baghdad Bounedjah, Akram Afif, Hassan Al Haydous, Asia’s best player Abdulkarim Hassan, South Korean midfielder Jung Woo-Young and Pedro.
Spanish midfield master Xavi Hernandez is back in training after an injury layoff, but is a doubtful starter. So is defender Boualem Khoukhi, who is also nursing an injury.
“Qatar’s win at the Asian Cup was not the end of the journey. Our journey is still long with a lot of young players in the national team looking to work and give their best,” Salman said.
“Our coaching staff has the capability to energize the players in the best way, so that they can give their best in every match,” Salman said.