Al Arabi coach Heimir Hallgrimsson spoke to the media ahead of their 2020-21 season QNB Stars League Week 19 match against Al Rayyan.

“We respect Al Rayyan, they are doing well this season and have not made many changes in the squad. That gives them stability and strength, and increases the difficulty of our match.

“Our matches with Al Rayyan are always tough, especially since the fan factor is there. That increases the enthusiasm of the match and the margin of victory/draw will be less, as we have seen in the previous matches.

“We have two absentees - Ayoub Azzi due to suspension and Khalifa Al Maliki due to injury.

“If we want to go to the top of the table and guarantee a place among the big four, we must win all the remaining matches and continue to improve, especially after the Al Rayyan match, so that we can prepare for the last three games well. We have to keep winning.

“Al Arabi fans are always present at the venue and their number is increasing after every match. What I liked the most was that even when the team was not performing very well, they were still present at the matches and training. I hope we finish this season well by obtaining maximum points possible from the last four matches,” said Hallgrimsson.

Al Arabi player Yousef Msakni said, “Our remaining matches are difficult, especially against Al Rayyan, but everything is possible in football. We are doing well and the fighting spirit is evident on players as well as technical and administrative staff. I hope we will continue the same way and reach the top four this season and achieve better results next season.”