Al Sadd coach Juan Manuel Lillo ‘Juanma’ stressed team’s readiness for their 2022-2023 season QNB Stars League Week 17 match against Al Shamal which will be played on Friday.

Speaking ahead of the match, coach Juanma said: “As we always say, every competitor has strengths, and we will try to take them into account and impose our style of play.

“Even if we won the last match (against Al Duhail), our chances will remain difficult because of the seven matches before the World Cup and then the defeat against Al Ahli. Now we know that the difficulty has increased and things are complicated, but we are committed to entering all matches with the goal of winning.

“The situation is the opposite in the other competitions remaining in the season, because there is no ranking table, and you play with the knockout system. You must win one match to ensure qualification for the next round and it is logical that we have every chance to win those tournaments,” said Juanma.

In turn, Al Shamal coach Wesam Rizik said: “We have a tough task against a large team like Al Sadd, who are one of the strongest teams in the region. They have distinguished players both at the level of foreign professionals or nationals.

“We hope to be on top of our readiness and change the image in which we appeared in the last match against Umm Salal.

“We realize that the Al Sadd match will be difficult, but our players are ready for it and our goal is to present a good image and achieve the desired result for us.

“Focus is very important because any moment in which we lose focus will be exploited by a team such as Al Sadd with players at the highest level.

“We are waiting for a reaction from the players in order to achieve a positive result,” said Wesam.

Source: Qatar News Agency