Al Duhail coach Luis Castro spoke to the media ahead of their 2021-2022 season QNB Stars League Week 14 match Al Gharafa.

“I am completely satisfied with our defence and now we have to ensure we do not make mistakes because we suffered from them. Losing the ball means putting pressure on the defence, the whole team must defend.

“The players have a high degree of responsibility in all matches. Against Al Arabi, I saw them play and enjoy while taking responsibility, despite the mistakes that appeared. But they cannot be compared with those committed in previous matches. This is the secret, we had many attacks in the match against Al Arabi and the players translated it into goals. I was impressed by the correct positioning of the players, and it was an enjoyable and comfortable victory. I hope that will happen in the upcoming matches.

“Due to injuries and absences, it was difficult for us to find a squad to play two matches in a row, and I did not have enough players. The Qatar league is very difficult and we respect all competitors,” said Castro.

Al Duhail player Ali Afif said, “We will go into the match in order to achieve victory. We are waiting for an important match against a great team with a distinguished performance. But we will take the field with full concentration in order to achieve victory and improve the level we showed in the last match.

“I was surprised to appear in the new position in the last match (in the center of defence), but I the coach and team-mates had confidence in me. It was also due to the absence of first-choice defenders.”