Al Duhail coach Christophe Galtier spoke to the media ahead of their 2024-2025 season Ooredoo Stars League Week 10 match against Al Arabi.

“The preparations were short before facing Al Arabi due to the international break and the commitments of the national team and Olympic team, but in the end the international players returned and we started our preparations with full seriousness for the upcoming match.

“We know the Al Arabi team well and we are aware of the strength of their attacking line and the strengths and weaknesses of the team, which is what we focused on during our training. The international players were not with us during the preparations, but of course the opportunity was available for non-international players to participate in the QSL Cup, which helped us see the extent of everyone’s readiness.

“We will work hard with the return of the international players to maintain the team’s strength and exploit the opportunities available to the Al Arabi team in order to decide the result of the match in our favour.

“I know very well that Al Arabi are a popular team and they have players capable of making a difference at any time. We must take the match very seriously and work to move ahead in our bid to win the title,” said Galtier.

Al Duhail player Homam Al Ameen said, “We know very well the difficulty of facing Al Arabi because of the distinguished players they have. Certainly, the absence from the team during the break increases the difficulty of things, but our goal and ambition is to always maintain the lead regardless of the circumstances.

“Al Arabi have players at a high level, especially in attack. The match is difficult for both teams, but our goal is to win the three points and maintain the lead.”