Doha: Al Wakrah are looking to bounce back after suffering a 5-0 defeat to newly-crowned QSL champions Al Rayyan.
The Blue Waves today meet a struggling Mesaimeer who have confirmed their relegation to the Qatar Gas League.
Mauricio Larriera, the head coach of Al Wakrah wants his side to learn from their mistakes in the match against Rayyan.
“It was a difficult game against Al Rayyan and we must learn from our mistakes moving forward,” he said.
Al Wakrah currently sit in 10th place in the QSL and they hope to ease relegation by making the most of the last five games.
“We consider these last five games as finals, since it is important for us to win all of them. The game against Mesaimeer is our first final and we need to prepare for it like it is our last game,” said the Uruguayan coach at the pre-match press conference recently.
Mesaimeer have now been formally relegated league and Larriera isn’t sure how the QSL’s bottom side will react in their game this evening.
“Now we have an opponent who is difficult to understand. We don’t know how they are going to play since they have been relegated. They will be unpredictable. That’s why we need to have patience and have lots of possession,” said the Uruguayan.
Wakrah are hoping to bounce back after a thumping defeat to Al Rayyan and it all comes down to how they deal with the pressure of this relegation clash. “Pressure is always there in football and our success depends on how we handle this pressure. We had pressure on us against Rayyan, even though we are not competing for the title we are challenging for mid table or possibly top four.”
aimeer are on bottom of the table and with their relegation confirmed they are looking to make the best of their remaining games in order to end their season on a high.
The team managed to pull off an impressive 1-1 draw in their previous game against 2nd placed El Jaish.
“Tomorrow’s match against Al Wakrah is very important for us. The last match against El Jaish gave us much needed confidence and we will hope to replicate a similar performance,” said Rodion Gacanin, the head coach of Mesaimeer Football Club.
Mesaimeer have struggled recently with injuries, causing them problems in attack.
“Our 2 main strikers are both injured and that’s why we don’t have a centre forward at the moment,” added the Croatian.
Gacanin, however, was full of praise for the quality of the QSL and lauded the level of competition in the league.
The Peninsula
