Al Duhail coach Djamel Belmadi spoke to the media ahead of their 2025-2026 season Doha Bank Stars League Week 4 match against Umm Salal.

“Of course, the match against Umm Salal is an important match, just like the rest of the tournament this season. We have not won yet, and this is strange and unusual for us. It is not good for me as the coach and certainly not good for everyone. We have to change this as soon as possible.

“We have scored only one goal in our previous three league matches, which is a very weak indicator. In our last match against Al Rayyan, we succeeded in creating opportunities, but we were unable to score due to a lack of effectiveness from everyone, not just the attacking line. We know Umm Salal is a good team. We must impose our style on them from the start, not the other way around, so as not to lose control of the match and achieve a positive result in the end.

“Following the injury of our Brazilian player, Tota, and with the onset of major competitions, especially AFC Champions League, we had to quickly sign a suitable player to compensate for Tota’s absence. We found that in Abdou Diallo, he represents a suitable addition to the team at this time,” said Belmadi.

Al Duhail goalkeeper Salah Zakaria said, “The team is ready against Umm Salal, aiming to achieve first victory in the tournament and quickly get back on track.

“Umm Salal have many players who can make a difference and they are one of the strong teams that utilize counterattacks well. However, I assure you that we are fully focused and have worked hard over the past period to address the mistakes we made in previous matches.”