Al Gharafa coach Slavisa Jokanovic spoke to the media ahead of their 2020-21 season QNB Stars League Week 20 match against Al Sadd.

“We now have a week where we will play three important matches, including our AFC Champions League play-off, but we must maintain our hopes of being in the top-four bracket in the league.

“Our preparations went off with approximately 12 players as nine of our players had joined various national teams. As they return, we will continue our preparations for the rest of the matches.

“Al Sadd have made some changes in many matches, due to the availability of many distinguished players in their squad and we expect that some of their players will be given rest, especially those coming from national team duties. But that matter is a decision of Al Sadd coach.

“In general, despite these changes, they are not affected as a team, which is the best this season. Therefore, we are fully aware of the difficulty of the match. We must show the required quality of performance so that we can achieve the desired result.

“We are now one point away from the top four. We started the season well, but during the past two months, our performance was not perfect. We must maintain our focus and strive to end the season in the best possible position,” said Jokanovic.

Al Gharafa goalkeeper Ahmed Sufyan said, “We are facing a champion side in Al Sadd. At the same time, our ambition is to win to compensate for the recent losses suffered by our team. I wish it is going to be a good match.

“Al Sadd, as I mentioned, are the league champions and one of the strongest teams this season. Naturally, they are not easy opponents.”