Al Rayyan are playing in the Qatar Cup for the fourth time in a row. They will play the second semifinal against Al Sadd on Saturday, 11th January, 2020. The kick-off is at 19:30 at the Al Sadd Stadium.

Al Rayyan qualified for the Qatar Cup by finishing fourth in the 2018-19 QNB Stars League with 37 points, behind Al Sadd (57), Al Duhail (50) and Al Sailiya (38).

The Lions won 10 matches, drew seven and lost five. They had a goal difference of three, having scored 34 goals and conceded 31.

Despite having a good start to the season, Al Rayyan gradually ran out of contention for the title and could end up only fourth.

During that season, they underwent many changes on the fronts of foreign professional players and technical staff. They began the season by signing Argentinian coach Rodolfo Arraubarrena. After Rodolfo parted ways with the club, they handed over the reins to Gilson de Souza.

Then came Turk Bulent Uygun, who had earlier managed Umm Salal and Al Gharafa in Qatar. However, following the decision of the Board of Directors of Al Rayyan to relieve Bulent of the duties, De Souza was again assigned to lead the first team.

With the start of new season (2019-20), Al Rayyan made drastic changes, at the level of technical staff and foreign professional players.

They roped in Qatar international midfielder Abdulaziz Hatem, a member of the 2019 Asian Cup-winning squad, as well as Khaled Muftah.

On to the 2020 Qatar Cup, the big question is ‘will Al Rayyan, coached by Diego Aguirre and served by prominent players, be able to overcome the semifinal obstacle in the form of Al Sadd and reach the final?’