By Anil John/Doha

"You never know”. Malaysia coach K. Rajagopal uttered these magical three words thrice during a press conference before his team’s Asian Cup 2015 qualifier against Qatar at Al Sadd Club today.

Of course, we’ve heard everything about sport being a great leveller with all its accompanying uncertainties, but the way the former Malaysian striker said it, it hardly left much to the imagination of those attending yesterday’s media briefing.

Rajagopal sounded partly optimistic, although the general tone of the 56-year-old betrayed a deep undercurrent of despair, even resignation. It was almost as if in his heart of hearts he understood very well that his team have little chance of causing an upset in their Group D opener.  Certainly not on Qatar’s home turf.

Now, Qatar are not a mighty side by any stretch of imagination, but if the FIFA world rankings are indeed produced on the basis of solid scientific evidence, the hosts should be romping home with a great deal to spare.

Qatar are ranked 106th in the world, and Malaysia only 158th, a whopping 52 slots down, which should logically make the match a non-contest. But even those who tend to dismiss the rankings as theoretical balderdash would not be cajoled into putting their money on Malaysia this time.

More than their woeful place in the world rankings, it is the injury-situation in the team that worries Malaysian fans. Any team would be hit hard if two or three of their best players have to sit out of a crucial match, but what can you say of a team which is missing a whopping 10 players?

Yes, 10. The Malaysian league, hardly into its second month of the new season, has already left 10 members of the national team injured raising several questions about the way football is run in that country, apart from the overall fitness levels of the players. The peculiar situation has left the coach with precious little to choose from to fill the vacant slots.

“Yes 10 of our players are injured,” said Rajagopal. “Of them seven are regular national team players. However, we have to deal with the situation in the best way possible.

“You never know.”

Rajagopal said the fact that Qatar had been playing a lot of football lately would benefit the hosts greatly.

“Qatar have been playing the World Cup qualifiers of course and last month participated in the Gulf Cup, so they have been in the thick of things.”

Last week, Malaysia lost to Iraq 3-0 in a friendly international, while Qatar beat Lebanon 1-0 to give new coach Fahad Thani a winning debut.

Today’s match against Malaysia offers the Qatari a golden chance to extend his record and consolidate his position at the top.  Helping Qatar qualify for the 2015 Asian Cup in Australia could hand him an extended run at the helm following the dismissal of about half-a-dozen coaches by Qatar over the past two years.

“We have the support of the fans and the higher-ups,” said Thani, who took over from Brazilian Paulo Autuori after Qatar’s dismal run in the Gulf Cup.

“We are playing on our home ground and in front of our fans. We respect Malaysia and the fact that they are here to compete. But we are keen to bag three points.”

Thani added he will be playing safe with the team composition as this was not the right stage to experiment too much.

“I’d like to field a team with the right balance instead of making wholesale changes. We cannot forget that the squad we have is the best we could muster. So while there would be one or two relatively new faces, the core team would be the same.”

Uruguayan-born Sebastian Soria, a veteran of many years in Doha, is expected to spearhead the attack once again. Fellow striker Jarallah al-Marri, however, is injured and will not take the field.

“Jaraallah is the only injured player in our team. All others are fit and ready” said Thani.

As usual former Asian Player of the Year Khalfan Ibrahim will support Soria in the attack, something which Rajagopal was wary of.

“We are aware of what Khalfan, Soria are capable of,” he said.

The match begins at 6.30pm. The top two teams from each group qualify for the tournament in Australia, along with the best third-placed side.

Group A: Jordan, Syria, Oman, Singapore

Group B: Iran, Kuwait, Thailand, Lebanon

Group C: Iraq, China, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia

Group D: Qatar, Bahrain, Yemen, Malaysia

Group E: Uzbekistan, UAE, Vietnam, Hong Kong.