Lekhwiya head coach Djamel Belmadi has predicted a difficult match against Al Sailiya when the two teams meet on Friday evening at Qatar Sports Club Stadium. Speaking to the press ahead of the match the Algerian tactian said; “Al Sailiya are a well-organized side, they have had a good victory against Meisameer and will be full of confidence.”

“We have trained well for the match, although we will be without Yasser Ahmed who is still injured after his time with the Qatar U23 side, apart from this we are at full strength.”  Explained the former Qatar national team coach.

The head coach of the QSL champions was asked about the impact of losing Slovakian winger Vladimir Weiss who moved to Al Gharafa on transfer deadline day. “Vladimir Weiss is a good player, but at Lekhwiya we do not look to just one player. We pride ourselves on the team collective, and we have shown that in recent results.  I wish Vladimir all the best at Gharafa.”

“We will fight to the very end for the league, Al Rayyan has a big lead at the moment, but this is football and it can quickly change” noted Belmadi when asked if Lekhwiya could reclaim the falcon shield.
 


Sailiya head coach Sami Trabelsi believes his side is well prepared ahead of their clash against second placed Lekhwiya. “ We have worked on several key areas of our game this week, I feel we are ready tactically to face a strong team like Lekhwiya.” Said the Tunisian coach at his side’s pre-match press conference on Thursday morning.

 “The loss of Abdul Qadir Elias is a big one for us, he was a strong player for Sailiya. However his time with us with short, and I wish him the best at his new side.” Confessed Trabelsi who saw Elias leave for Umm Salal on transfer deadline day.
 
When asked about the title race Trabelsi was sure of only one winner. “I think now, with Al Rayyan’s lead the title race is over. However there is still plenty to play for with Qatar Cup and Relegation places.”