Tribune News Network
Doha
Al Markhiya face Al Rayyan in Week 1 of the 2023-2024 season Expo Stars League at 8.30pm at the Al Janoub Stadium on Thursday.
Both teams have many quality players in the starting lineup, which will provide a great and enjoyable match for the fans.
After finishing last season in seventh place, Al Markhiya entered the ‘American era’ by contracting with American coach Anthony Hudson to become the first American coach to lead a Qatari club in the Stars League.
Al Markhiya have shored up the team ahead of the season with the inclusion of, most notably, Tamim Al Muhaiza, Moayad Hassan, Abdulaziz Metwally, and Mohammed Al Abbasi.
There are also a number of foreign professionals among them, including Portuguese Rochinha, who came in from Sporting Lisbon, Gambian striker Yousufa Nji from Portuguese club Boavista, Portuguese midfielder Joao Teixeira and Dutch rising star Novel Benes.
Speaking ahead of the match, Al Markhiya coach Anthony Hudson said his team “is now in the required readiness to present an exceptional season.
The old and new players of the team showed great harmony and all the players showed their capabilities and made good starts through friendly matches. We feel that we are very excited to compete in the league competitions. Through our opener against Al Rayyan, we want to announce ourselves and make a strong start.
“The focus of the technical staff and all players is currently on the league championship and we want to work together to play fun football. The most important thing is to achieve positive results and I am happy for the teamwork and enthusiasm shown by the players and the administrative and technical staff towards the team in a more than wonderful atmosphere,” said Hudson.
Al Markhiya captain Talal Ali said, “The players are seeking to present a positive result in their match against Al Rayyan and to show all their capabilities, especially as it is their first test in the new football season.
Al Rayyan are under new Portuguese coach Leonardo Jardim.
The team is looking forward to returning to the top ranks after a season in which they suffered and came very close to the relegation zone.
Al Rayyan have boosted their ranks by including a number of foreign professionals, the last of whom was the Brazilian Roger Geddes. Before that, they got Spaniard Rodrigo Moreno from Leeds United, England; the Brazilian Gabriel Pereira from New York City, and Tiago Mendez from French club Lyon. The foreign signings from last season, Moroccan Soufiane Boufal and Japanese Shogo Taniguchi, are continuing with the team as well.
Locally, Al Rayyan included a group of players led by Bassam Al Rawi, who came from Al Duhail, and goalkeeper Fahd Al Qasimi, Ali Jassemi, Adel Badr and Ahmed Al Minhali.
