Doha: Al Sadd - Qatar’s representative in this year’s Asian Champions League (ACL) - have asked Qatar Stars League (QSL) organisers to reschedule next season’s Sheikh Jassim Cup.
The request is due to the Champions League quarter finals that will take place within a few days of the Qatari domestic competition.
The Sheikh Jassim Cup is to be played on August 15 between the winners of QSL, Lekhwiya and the winners of the Emir Cup, Al Sadd.
The AFC Champions League quarter-final first leg will be played on 19 of the same month, giving the wolves just four days to recover and play again.
Therefore the club has asked that the Sheikh Jassim Cup be moved to August 13 so that the players have a week to get themselves ready for the important pan-Asian clash.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Al Balushi the Sports Director of Al Sadd will fly out to AFC headquarters on May 27 to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
He will attend the draw for the quarter-finals of the Asian Champions League.
After three months of intense group stages and round of 16 matches, the ACL quarter-finalists will be eagerly awaiting the draw results that will be held at AFC House May, 28.
South Korea and Saudi Arabia are represented by two clubs each, whilst there are also teams from Australia, China, UAE and Qatar.
Clubs from traditional powerhouses such as Japan, Uzbekistan and Iran all failed to make the cut for the quarter-finals this season.
Representing West Asia in this year’s competition is Al Ittihad, Al Hilal, Al Ain, and Al Sadd. From East Asia and Australia there are also four teams: Western Sydney Wonderers, Pohang Steelers, FC Seoul and Guangzhou Evergrande.
The first quarter-final will be played on the August 19 by two West Asian Clubs, and a day later two East Asian teams will also fight it out. The second legs will be played on the August 26 and 27 respectively, to see who will end up in the semi-finals which will take place on September 16.
Meanwhile, the Competition and Football Development department of the Qatar Stars League (QSL) have published the first ever in depth report of Qatar’s top football league. The report was published and distributed on May 15.
Within its pages is a highly in-depth statistical analysis of the entire 2013/14 QSL season and was compiled with the help of Prozone, a performance analysis company.
Al Harami - QSL Chief of Competition and Football Development over saw the project along with his team who spent the whole season working on it.
The report was distributed to all 14 QSL clubs, including the General Secretaries of the clubs, the Sport Officers, Head Coaches, Assistant Coaches, Fitness Coaches, Performance Analysts and the Goal Keeping Coaches.
Al Harami - QSL Chief of Competition and Football Development said: “The report signifies yet another significant step forward for the QSL as an organization and the clubs who will undoubtedly benefit from such a comprehensive document.”
The Peninsula
