Doha, Qatar: Al Gharafa will be looking to bounce back from back to back defeats which resulted in the exiting two Cup competitions in a week.
Gharafa suffered a shock defeat to Al Markhiya in the Amir Cup last 16 before losing to Al Ahli in the Ooredoo Cup.
And now they have a chance to redeem themselves to an extent when they meet Ahli again on Thursday and bring their Qatar Stars League back on track.
Gharafa are fourth in the standings with 24 points, five above fifth-placed Al Arabi, but any more slip-ups will put them under undue pressure.
“After exiting from two cup competitions (Amir Cup and Ooredoo Cup) in successive weeks, I hope there will be a reaction that leads us to provide a better level. We regret the recent results, we did not appear at the required level. Now what we think about is the next match. We will try to turn a new leaf by winning it,” said Gharafa coach Slavisa Jokanovic.
“In football, there is always the next stage for you to think about. Now, we have Al Ahli match and we will do our best to get three points.”
The Serbian said the absence of some key players was the reason behind Gharafa’s dip in form.
When some key players were absent, such as in the last game where we missed three foreign professionals, our performance dipped. The solution is to be organised and keep working for all players. Everyone must be ready to take advantage of the opportunity and provide the best,” said Jokanovic.
In Thursday’s other match, Arabi play Al Shahania.
Al Rayyan, in second with 31 points, take on Al Khor on Friday while Qatar SC play Al Sailiya.
Al Sadd, who are back in the title hunt following leaders Al Duhail’s defeat to Rayyan meet Umm Salal on Saturday.
In the last match of the week, Duhail will face the tricky challenge of Al Wakrah.
Source: dohastadiumplusqatar.com