The Qatar Stars League is back and the first match of Round 1 sees newly promoted Al Rayyan take on Al Sailiya who last season finished 11^th in the standings. The Match kicks off at the Jassim Bin Hamad stadium at 18:00 this Friday. Be sure to grab your tickets now!
Al Rayyan returned to the QSL at the first time of asking, storming the Qatar Gas league and ending up as champions.

The Lions has strengthened significantly over the summer, bringing in seasoned Head Coach Jorge Fossati back to the QSL. Fossati won the AFC Champions league with Al Sadd in 2011, so the Lions will be hoping that the Uruguayan coach can bring his vast experience and leadership to the squad.

Be sure to watch out for two new signings. Spanish striker Sergio Garcia, he scored 18 goals for Espanyol in La Liga last season. The second man who looks a bit decent is defensive midfielder Ulisyes Pascusa, signed from Al Shahania; he’s a tenacious midfielder who will give the lions plenty of bite in the centre of the park.

For Sailiya last season turned out to be a frustrating saga as the Peregrines finished an uninspiring season in 11^th spot.  The season before Trabelsi worked his magic as he blended together a decent team of local and foreign talent who finished 4^th.

This summer the Tunisian tactician has been given money to rebuild his squad after many players left when he was just starting to get results.

New signings include bringing in players with international experience such as Romanian defender Dragoș Grigore & Cameroonian midfielder Raoul Loé, picked up from Toulouse & Osasuna respectively.

The main player to watch for this season for the Peregrines is exciting attacking midfielder Abdurrahman Al Harazi who last season caught the eye with some great individual goals. Al Sailiya will be hoping he can torment Rayyan’s defence this Friday.

After this fixture Rayyan will then face Al Kharaitiyat who have the creative Anwar Diba back since his horrific injury two years ago.

For Sailiya, the next match will be against the dreaded El Jaish, so a win this Friday is crucial as the Peregrines look to forge a solid campaign this year.