The 2019-20 season QNB Stars League’s Week 5 matches will be played on Thursday, 26th September, and Saturday, 28th September, at the Al Arabi and Al Gharafa Stadiums.

The fixtures were rescheduled in consultation with the National Teams Management, taking into consideration the AFC Champions League and on request of the Organising Committee of World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 whose opening ceremony will be held on Friday, 27th September.

The fixtures are Umm Salal vs Al Wakrah (17:50, Al Arabi Stadium) on Thursday, Al Shahania vs Al Duhail (17:50, Al Arabi Stadium), Al Ahli vs Al Rayyan (17:50, Al Gharafa Stadium), Al Gharafa vs Al Sailiya (20:00, Al Gharafa Stadium) and Qatar SC vs Al Khor (20:00, Al Arabi Stadium) on Saturday.

Al Arabi’s match against reigning champions Al Sadd has been deferred due to Al Sadd’s AFC Champions League first-leg semifinal against Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia in Doha on 1st October.

Umm Salal will open the week’s action against Al Wakrah. Both teams had lost in the last round, so they will be keen to win, especially Umm Salal who have not yet registered a victory.

Umm Salal crashed to their third defeat when they lost 1-2 to Al Sadd, while Al Wakrah went down fighting 2-4 to Al Duhail.

On Saturday, there will be two simultaneous kick-offs – Al Shahania vs Al Duhail and Al Ahli vs Al Rayyan (17:50) and Al Gharafa vs Al Sailiya and Qatar SC vs Al Khor (20:00).

Al Shahania too have not tasted victory, while Al Duhail cannot afford to drop points in their bid to regain the league shield.

Al Ahli vs Al Rayyan game will be noted for the presence of traditional fans of both clubs.

Al Ahli won two games and lost as many. The Brigadiers lost 1-3 to Al Gharafa last week.

Al Rayyan have only one win to their credit (last week’s 2-0 victory over Al Khor). The Lions are unbeaten as they had drawn the other three encounters.

Both Al Gharafa and Al Sailiya (beat Qatar SC 1-0) had won in Week 4, and will be keen to extend their winning run.

Meanwhile, Al Sailiya lost 1-3 to Al Sadd in the rescheduled fixture from Week 3 at the Al Janoub Stadium on Tuesday, 24th September. The Wolves thus climbed to the top of QNB Stars League with 12 points and are the only side with an all-win record, while Al Sailiya are languishing at ninth place with four points.

Qatar SC have yet to collect a point, like Al Shahania. Al Khor too would look to put an end to their losing streak.

All games are sure to evoke keen interest among fans as the teams are eager to improve their positions.