Al Duhail Head Coach Christophe Galtier stressed the importance of the team getting a positive result in their next match versus Al Ahli. In his speech to the pre-match press conference that was held at 02:30 pm yesterday afternoon in the club’s press conference hall, the coach said: Of course, we are disappointed after the two defeats we suffered, especially when both occured consecutively, and we were leading in both matches, which requires us to analyze correctly. The matches come quickly, and even if there is a shortage in the number of players, we must work hard to improve our defensive style, and I am not talking here only about the defensive line. After analyzing the situation, it seems that our defensive line does not find enough support from the midfield, which does not find enough support from the attacking line. If we want to restore the team’s dynamics, the players must work for the team, especially in the aspect of recovering the ball and winning it in individual challenges (one against one), and we must work a lot in concentration inside the field throughout the game time.
Galtier added: Since I took over the team, and excluding the Ooredoo Cup competition, the team played 10 matches in the league and the AFC Champions League, scoring 17 goals, which is equivalent to (1.7) goals per match, which is a good thing, however in return, our net received 18 goals, which is a very large number. If we want to adjust the situation, we must radically change our defensive position and the way we defend.
The coach continued: We will have to win the next match, which is certain, and we will monitor the results of the competing teams for us, and we will start preparing for the second part of the league in January next year. If we want to compete for the league title, we must automatically record a series of victories. Although we faced a difficult period in the first part of the league, we hope to provide a better level in the second part, and just as some teams performed well in the first part, they can face challenges in the second part.
He said: The participation of our players in the Asian Cup is a very exciting experience, and when they return, we hope to have more players available, especially the foreigners who returned from long injuries that we were unable to retrieve in the first part of the competition. Despite the absence of a large number of players, a number of young players were present with us, but they lack experience, and they are giving their best when they participate, but my message to them is that they must take advantage of the opportunities and benefit from them.
The coach concluded: Our match versus Al Wakra was a big disappointment, and it was the worst match we have performed since I arrived at the team. There are many questions such as whether the performance could be related to the absence of some players? Was the impact in the midfield? Is there fatigue due to consecutive matches? These are not excuses, this is the truth, and we cannot hide behind excuses. Regardless of the results, the matches are played and there may be victories, draws, or defeats, but the content of the match was very bad.
