El Jaish coach Sabri Lamouchi (left) and Lekhwiya coach Michael Laudrup during the pre-match press conferences of the Qatar Cup final. Pictures: Anas Khalid

By Sports Reporter/Doha

The Qatar Cup final today promises to be a mouth-watering affair as two of the top teams in the country will battle it out to lift the glittering trophy. Qatar Stars League champions Lekhwiya will be keen to add to their trophy cabinet when they take on El Jaish at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa stadium. Jaish, on the other hand, haven’t had a great QSL season and only managed to finish a distant third in the standings and will be keen to upset the applecart and get their hands on some silverware this season.
Here’s what the coaches and players of both teams had to say about today’s final during the pre-match press conferences.

El Jaish coach Sabri Lamouchi:
“It is very important that a young club like El Jaish is participating in the Final. “Last season El Jaish won the first ever Qatar cup we are a young club and it is very important for us to defend our title, of course we have done all that is necessary to prepare the team as we build up to the big day.
 “We know we are playing one of the biggest teams in Qatar in Lekhwiya, they are one of the most dominant teams in the league over the last couple of years.  This year they won the league.
“I expect it to be a tough game but I hope we take our chances, we haven’t won the cup yet but we have played well so far so I hope we continue like this.
“Qatari football is very lucky to have such good coaches in this league, Laudrup needs no introduction, and Ammouta at Al Sadd has also done well and managed to build a new team who is strong and competitive.
“I know that my team is able to beat Lekhwiya and I know my players have the right motivation but it won’t be easy. Yes we know the rules; we will play only 90 minutes, so there won’t be any extra time.  We have worked on the penalties, so we know that this is a possibility.”

El Jaish defender Anderson Martins:
“We are facing a good team but we know that we have a good chance to get this title as we did last season. We hope to do a very good job for ourselves and the fans. The coach gave us plenty of information and now expects us to do a good job.
“In a final you have to be 100% concentrated if you want to succeed and all the players know this.
With regards to my recent success in front of goal I think I have done well but first of all I am a defender. Yet if I have an opportunity to help and score, then I will try but my first responsibility is to make sure that I focus on my primary role to help the team.”
 
El Jaish Midfield playmaker Magid Mohammed:
“As my captain Anderson just said, it is very important game, we are in very good shape, we beat Al Sadd in the semi-final and gave a good performance.
“No we don’t really have any added pressure as champions of this Cup. With regards to our defence, I think we are more than capable in dealing with them, they have many famous players but we are not fazed by that.”

Absences:
Jaish could be without defender Wessam Rizk, and striker Mohammed Muntari too is a doubt and will be examined later today.
 
Lekhwiya head coach Michael Laudrup:
“Tomorrow it’s a final, which is always special as we will be playing for a very special trophy. Tomorrow we will play against a strong team who beat Al Sadd in convincing fashion, we can expect a very good game.
“The Club knows that generally we have done well, we always manage to win the league or a cup but as yet never the double so I am keen to rectify this.
“We coaches have a job to do but in the end the most important factor is the players, something which I also believed when I was playing football.
“It’s a very important 10 days, we will play for the final in the Qatar cup tomorrow, then in the Asian Champions League, we have to win at all costs and in the Emir Cup we will be playing an important semi-final either against Salal or Sailiya depending on who wins.”

Lekhwiya central defender Chico Flores:
“Yes it is an important target, it is a different competition and we will try to win it. We will not underestimate our opponents and we will have to focus 100%.
“Yes it is a totally different type of match and we have to be more focused because in some Cup competitions you don’t get a second chance.
“With regards to my personal adaptation to the league, I would have to say that I was lucky because I got good support from the Club and my coach Laudrup who I was with in Swansea.”

Absences:
Vladimir Weiss is a doubt and Luiz Martin too will perhaps miss the game.