Al Gharafa coach Andrea Stramaccioni spoke to the media ahead of their 2021-2022 season QNB Stars League Week 7 match against Al Khor.

“To start with, we have to put behind the loss against Al Sadd in the sixth round  and take the positives from it. We have to correct the mistakes we made in the match. Now we have a new challenge in facing Al Khor, which will not be easy, and we have to play a good match if we want to win.

“Regarding the defensive imbalance in the Al Gharafa team and my Italian school of coaching known for defensive solidity, I think this is related to the mental aspect and the personality as well because my style of play is strict, and we have to be ready to deal with tackles with greater intensity.

“Unfortunately, during the last two league matches, against Qatar SC and Al Sadd, we made some mistakes that we have to correct and not repeat. Despite that, I am happy because when we were three goals behind in 18 minutes against Al Sadd, we managed to come back even though it was not easy. We had chances to score and generally we have to move from this point. We are a young team and we work hard.

“The Al Khor match is one of the most difficult matches. I personally fear such matches because when you face Al Sadd or Al Duhail, you are at the highest degree of concentration. It will be a difficult match at the level of preparation and I want us to have continuity and more development as the matches continue, but unfortunately we miss continuity.

“For example, I was happy to rely on Sofiane Hanni with Cheick Diabate and Ahmed Alaa, which is a good triple system, and now we miss Ahmed Alaa again. On the other hand, I am happy with Saifeldeen (Fadlalla), regardless of the own goal he scored. He is one of the youngest players in Al Gharafa and he played a good match against Al Sadd,” said Stramaccioni.

Al Gharafa player Amro Seraj said, “Al Khor are a distinguished team and our preparations are like those for any match, and we hope to win.

“We were affected at the beginning during the match against Al Sadd by conceding three goals inside 18 minutes, but with the coach’s tactic, we tried to correct mistakes and reduce the difference more than once, but we were not lucky.”

“God willing, our ambition is the first or second place in the league standings.”