Umm Salal coach Patrice Carteron spoke to the media ahead of their 2023-2024 season Expo Stars League Week 6 match against Al Rayyan.

“The Al Rayyan match will not be easy in view of the strength of the competitors and the distinguished coach they have, as they have achieved good results. They are an organized team, strong tactically and technically, and offer good levels.

“For our part, we tried during training to improve performance and correct mistakes. I believe that the current stage of the league will be more difficult in every match, and we are progressing well. We will be 100 per cent ready despite the injury worry and we need to continue the victories in order to advance in the league standings and improve our position.

“I see that the level of league matches this season is stronger and more difficult than last season, and there is a great improvement among all teams, so all matches will be strong and important,” said Carteron

Umm Salal player Nasser Al Nasr said, “A strong and important match awaits us, where we will try to present our true level to achieve the desired result, which is to win the three points.

“I think that the Al Rayyan match will be strong and difficult for both teams because each team has ambitions.

“We must play with high concentration and I hope that we will be successful in exploiting the opportunities and strengthening our position with three valuable points. We will also enter the match strongly and present a great match as per the coach’s plan, and nothing is impossible in football. We must take advantage of the victory that the team achieved in the previous rounds.”