Al-Sadd head coach Javi Gracia addressed the media ahead of the upcoming game against Al-Wakrah in the QNB Stars League, and spoke of the difficulty of the clash, a postponed fixture from Round 11.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Gracia said: “We know that we will play against a team that’s in their best form with very good stats both defensively and offensively. They are a very compact team and we know it will be a difficult game.”
“We are preparing and working hard because we know the chances will be equal in this game and it will demand a lot from us.”
The coach praised Al-Wakrah as “a very organised tea” and added: “They defend really well. They play with high pressure and they are very aggressive and a compact team.”
“They don’t allow many chances and they don’t concede many goals. So we have to be ready to play at our best, to perform very well, because you could see in their last game they played really well.”
As for the return of several player to his squad, Gracia said: “I’m always happy to have more players in the squad. Some of them are returning from injuries after a long time, like Pedro for example. We have two other players returning from the Africa Cup of Nations. Now we have more options.”
He added: “But that’s not only for us; other teams too are in the same situation as us.”
“For us, it’s good news to have more players and more options, because I’m sure we are going to need all of them for the rest of the season.”
