Almoez Ali, captain of Al Duhail and one of the most prominent strikers of his club and the Qatar national team, is noted for high fighting spirit and technical as well as goal-scoring abilities that have made him one of the leading scorers not only in Qatar, but also in Asia.

Almoez is gearing up with Al Duhail ahead of their 2021 Qatar Cup semifinal against Al Gharafa on Thursday, 18th February, 2021.

Almoez spoke to qsl.qa in an Exclusive Interview ahead of the 2021 Qatar Cup.

At the outset, what’re your ambitions for the 2021 Qatar Cup?

Our ambitions for the 2021 Qatar Cup are great, we need to win the championship to make up for the disappointments we’ve had. I expect our start to be strong and we’ve many goals that we hope to achieve.

How great are Al Duhail’s chances of regaining the cup?

Al Duhail are a big club and we’ve the ability to win all tournaments and Qatar Cup is no exception.

How about your match against Al Gharafa?

We respect Al Gharafa, who beat us in the 2020-21 season QNB Stars League’s first leg. The next match will be different from the previous games because cup matches have a special character. Our goal is to win and reach the final.

Who’re the favourites to reach the final?

It isn’t possible to predict the favourite team to reach the final, but of course I hope Al Duhail will be in the final.

Many agree that cup matches are different from the league. To what extent do you see the difference?

Yes, it’s certain that cup matches are different, because you can’t afford to lose. You’re out with defeat. And in cup matches, teams tend to be defensive as no team wants to concede goals and the players stay highly focused.

What do you think are the main strengths and weaknesses of each team?

Strengths and weaknesses more or less depend on the players’ focus and readiness for the match.

After Al Duhail’s distinguished appearance in the FIFA Club World Cup, your victory over AFC Champions League winners Ulsan Hyundai of South Korea and the subsequent fifth place, do you think it’s a new impetus for the team to excel in domestic tournaments, especially Qatar Cup?

Our participation in the FIFA Club World Cup was very positive and it was a great honour, through which we gained experience and learned a lot. We hope to build on it in the Qatar Cup and other tournaments.

Some believe that your team’s level often fluctuates, what do you think is the reason?

That’s typical in football. There’s no team that has a stable level all the time, but we’ll fight in all upcoming matches. Of late, we’ve started returning to our true level and we aim to reach the required level.

What’re your goals this season with Al Duhail and individually?

We still have many other tournaments that we hope to succeed in. We’ve two prestigious championships — the Amir Cup and Qatar Cup — which we hope to win. We also have the AFC Champions League, where we aim to progress maximum this year. At personal level, my ambition is to fight, score more goals and win a lot of tournaments.