The QNB Stars League’s Week 3 action is mainly noted for the Al Duhail vs Al Rayyan and Al Sadd vs Al Gharafa encounters.

The fixtures are Umm Salal vs Al Ahli (17:25) and Qatar SC vs Al Sailiya (19:35) at the Al Sadd Stadium on Friday, 17th August, Al Khor vs Al Shahania (17:25) and Al Kharaitiyat vs Al Arabi (19:35) at the Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday, 18th August, and Al Sadd vs Al Gharafa (17:25) at the Al Sadd Stadium and Al Duhail vs Al Rayyan (19:35) at the Khalifa International Stadium on Sunday, 19th August.

Al Sadd, Al Duhail and Al Gharafa are coming off victories, whereas Al Rayyan had to drop points against Umm Salal following their 1-1 draw.

That ended their winning run, which started with their Sheikh Jassim Cup triumph where they beat Al Duhail in tie-breaker after the regular time ended 1-1.

The clash between Al Duhail and Al Rayyan is sure to be keenly fought. Al Rayyan would hope to repeat their win in the Sheikh Jassim Cup while Al Duhail would expect to continue their winning run.

Al Sadd had recorded a 10-1 win over Al Arabi in the Qatar Derby to continue to top the standings, while Al Gharafa scored their first victory by beating Al Sailiya 2-1.

It is against this backdrop that the two teams face off.

Umm Salal, who had lost to Al Sailiya in their opener, will look for their first win when they clash with Al Ahli, who blanked Qatar SC 2-0 in Week 2.

Qatar SC will take on Al Sailiya, with both teams seeking their second victory.

Qatar SC have strengthened their ranks by signing Cameroonian striker Samuel Eto’o, who is a three-time UEFA Champions League winner. He has played for top teams such as Barcelona, Chelsea and Inter Milan.

Al Sailiya too have bolstered their squad by adding Brazilian defender Mauricio Ramos for two seasons from Turkey’s Caykor Rizespor.

Al Kharaitiyat and Al Arabi are both coming off defeats. Even though Al Arabi suffered a big defeat against Al Sadd, they look favourites to win.

Al Kharaitiyat last week recruited Romanian Valentin Lazar on loan from Al Sailiya.

Al Khor too will look for their first win when they take on Al Shahania, who opened their account last week by defeating Al Kharaitiyat.