Al Markhiya face Al Arabi in the opening match of Week 10 of 2023-2024 season Expo Stars League at the Grand Hamad Stadium of Al Arabi club on Friday, December 1, 2023. The kick-off is at 5.30pm.

Both teams are seeking to achieve victory and collect the maximum three points from this important match, despite their decline in the standings.

Al Arabi are in seventh place in the standings with nine points and have a postponed match, but this arrangement does not satisfy many of their fans, who want their team to be more competitive and be at the top of the standings.

Al Arabi achieved an important victory in the last round over Al Wakrah, beating them 2-1, with the winning goal coming in the last minutes through defender Jassim Jaber, which allowed the team to move into seventh place on goal difference ahead of Al Shamal and Al Ahli, who have the same number of points (nine) but are in eighth and ninth place respectively.

Only seven points separate them from the top four, with the season still to reach the halfway mark, making the likelihood of a top-four finish a possibility. The team would like to continue their superb form by achieving their third victory of the season at the expense of Al Markhiya.

With the return of Rafinha Alcantara to the squad, Al Arabi coach Younes Ali is counting on the good technical condition of the attacking duo of Omar Al Somah and Yousef Msakni, as well as the sheer brilliance of the midfield trio of Marco Verratti, Ahmed Fathi and Abdullah Al Marafi to earn the three points.

As for Al Markhiya, they are in a difficult situation, being at the bottom of the table with only three points from one victory and eight defeats.

Despite Algerian Madjid Bougherra assuming responsibility as coach and his success in leading Al Markhiya to their first victory this season, the team is still suffering in terms of results, the most recent of which was a 0-2 loss to Al Ahli.

Bougherra hopes that the team will withstand Al Arabi’s strong attack as they search for a positive result that will contribute to the team’s return to winning ways in their relegation battle.