Al Gharafa coach Andrea Stramaccioni spoke to the media ahead of their 2021-2022 season QNB Stars League Week 5 match against Qatar SC.

“We know very well that the Qatar SC team plans to secure third place in the points table. They have a group of good players, including (Javier) Martinez, who comes from Bayern Munich. He is one of the best midfielders in the world. Qatar SC have other good players also.

“Qatar SC’s league ranking does not reflect their real capabilities and their players will undoubtedly work hard to advance in the league. We have to prepare for that match in the best possible way.

“The media always talk about the standings and the ability of Al Gharafa to compete with the best sides, but our goals are different from those of others. Our goal is to develop performance from one match to another by relying on young players.

“In the last round, we were the only team that started the match with a large number of young players, all of whom were developed at the Aspire Academy. Nasser Al Ahraq, Abdullah Al Saai, Homam (Al Ameen), Ahmed Al Janahi along with Andrei and Yousef Saeed in the second half played well in the last match. We have the youngest team in the league and we have to support the young players,” said Stramaccioni.

Al Gharafa player Ahmed Al Janahi said, “This match is important for the two teams, especially for them, because their goal is to get all possible points from each match. We know Qatar SC are a good team that is looking to get their first win of the new season. We have prepared well for this match and our goal is to keep winning and collecting the points.

“We are ready to achieve the best result once again. We deal with each other as one family. We work well and look forward to doing the best in all matches. The presence of a player like Cheick Diabate helps me a lot on the field and being among the ranks of the Al Gharafa players is a good feeling.”