Al Sailiya head coach Sami Trabelsi is relishing his side’s chances against Al Arabi in their opening game of the new Qatar Stars League season.
“It’s true for us this is a special derby game. We won both matches last year, but that is now history. What is important for us is how we have prepared and that we go into the match ready for a season of football. I believe that we have had a strong pre-season in Tunisia and that we will give our all against Al Arabi,” the long-serving Sailiya coach said.
Sailiya have elected for stability this term with minimum changes while Arabi have made a host of changes, something which could be of benefit for Sailiya in this clash.
The pressure will be on Arabi in this match no doubt. They have signed many big players in Qatar and abroad I hope my side can exploit this in the match,” Trabelsi added.
Looking further ahead, Trabelsi outlined his sides targets for the season ahead. “We are not blessed with star players, we rely on the team work. This has been shown in pre-season and now we will need to highlight it against Al Arabi,”
“We are aiming to improve our finish last season. This is our aim. If we can start well then that is a good opening but the season is long and I expect plenty of challenges ahead,” he noted. Meamwhile, new Al Arabi head coach Gerardo Pelusso believes his well-drilled side are primed to compete QSL, in what he promises will be an ‘exciting season’ for the team and fans. “The preparation went well overall in both Germany and Qatar. The team came together and bonded well and has importantly worked hard.  We will do our best to get better results for Al Arabi this season” claimed the Uruguayan.
Arabi has been busy in the summer bringing in a host of new faces to the side. Despite the upheaval Pelusso feels that the side is ready for the new season. “It’s normal to bring in new players to the club, so you have to adapt to this. The group together is like a family. We now need to get the best out of the group starting with the first match.”
On Al Sailiya, the former Uruguayan national team coach said: “We know Sailiya finished well last season they have stability with a good coach and the same players. We have scouted them and confident of a plan to get all three points.”