Doha, 17 April 2023 - Al Rayyan face Al Duhail in their postponed match from Week 15 of the 2022-2023 season QNB Stars League at the Al Duhail Stadium on Tuesday. The match was postponed due to the teams' participation in Round of 16 of 2022 AFC Champions League.
The meeting comes at an important stage of the league championship, especially for title contenders Al Duhail, who are looking to bounce back from their recent loss to Al Gharafa, which helped Al Arabi move up as leaders with a one-point lead.
Al Duhail's Argentinian coach Hernan Crespo realizes that adverse results in his team's remaining four matches in the competition, starting with the Al Rayyan fixture, could jeopardize their chances.
The Red Knights would therefore go into the match with all their strength and focus to notch a win, collect three points and move to the top again. They are currently second with 42 points, but have played one match less match than Al Arabi.
As for Al Rayyan, they are still in a difficult position in the table following their 2-2 draw with Al Sailiya in Week 19. Al Rayyan are in ninth place with 17 points collected from four victories, five draws and eight defeats. They are on par with Al Shamal in the number of points, but superior by goal difference. Al Rayyan would therefore want to achieve a positive result to be well clear of the relegation zone.
Al Duhail are counting on their strong attack, represented by Michael Olunga (the second best scorer in the league after Al Wakrah's Jacinto Dala) and Almoez Ali. They failed to score in their last game against Al Gharafa, suffering a second successive loss after they went down to Al Sailiya in the Amir Cup quarterfinal.
Al Rayyan have the services of their Ivory Coast star Yohan Boli, Chilean Jeisson Vargas, and Moroccan Sofiane Boufal who would look to break Al Duhail's defences and score against their goalkeeper Salah Zakaria.
The Al Duhail vs Al Rayyan battle is expected to be exciting and will be eagerly watched by fans of both clubs.
Meanwhile, Al Markhiya face Al Shamal in their postponed match from Week 9 of the 2022-2023 season QNB Stars League at the Qatar SC Stadium on Wednesday.
It is a crucial clash and both teams will take to the field with a fierce aim of scoring a win for the three valuable points. While Al Shamal are eager to steer clear of the relegation zone, Al Markhiya would not want to move into the danger zone. Al Markhiya are currently in eighth place with 18 points and Al Shamal 10th with 17 points.
Both teams are licking their wounds from the defeats they faced in the previous round. Al Shamal lost to Al Wakrah 1-5 and therefore their coach Wesam Rizik has a tough task on hand in ensuring that the side makes up with a positive result over Al Markhiya.
Rizik also realizes that any further loss will make it difficult for the team's mission and involve them in difficult calculations, given the small difference in points between the teams that are battling at the bottom rungs of standings.
Al Shamal rely on some of their distinguished players, the most prominent being midfielder Amjad Attwan, along with Mohammed El Sayed, Majed Mohammed, Yacine Bammou and Ali Olwan.
Al Markhiya, who were edged 3-2 by Umm Salal in the last round, have shown good form, but they will need to compensate for the loss. Their coach Abdullah Mubarak will warn his players and demand a winning performance because only a victory would assure Al Markhiya of staying away from a difficult scenario of the relegation zone.
The Al Markhiya coach relies on his players Ayoub Assal, Driss Fettouhi, Ali Nasser Al Marri, Jameel Al Yahmadi and goalkeeper Louay Ashour among others.
Both teams are equally balanced adding to the difficulty and excitement of the contest.
