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Al Duhail Football Team Head Coach Christophe Galtier emphasized the importance of the upcoming Umm Salal match in the Qatar Stars League (QSL) to regain confidence and good performance at the team level, especially with the team losing some points in their journey towards winning the league title.
Galtier opened his remarks by saying: I was not happy with the result of the last match versus Al Rayyan. The result was not good for us, in addition to the overall performance despite our numerical superiority during the match. I think our team was not decisive and we were not at our best. Fatigue was evident, especially on the offensive side, and of course I spoke with the players about this matter.
He added: I spoke with the players and expressed my disappointment with the level we have been demonstrating recently, after playing three matches in which we only gained 4 points, which is not in line with our ambitions and desire to win the title. The matter is not easy, but we must regain the required confidence and performance in the matches, and we will consider it the beginning of the next match.
Galtier continued: We have started working on our mistakes that appeared versus Al Rayyan during the preparations before facing Umm Salal, and we tried to alert the players to the need to focus and regain confidence again in order to return to imposing our grip over the top spot.
Galtier added: Al Rayyan changed its coach, who in turn changed the shape and performance of the team. We had impressive results during the first leg, and therefore all teams are trying to appear perfectly during our matches. We expected the confrontation versus Al Rayyan to be easy after their player was sent off, which caused complacency on the part of our players, which negatively affected us. I stressed to the players that we did not appear in the appropriate manner against a strong team like Al Rayyan. We had the opportunity to move away with the lead and we had to take advantage of the opportunities.
Galtier went on: Of course, Al Gharafa victory in most of their matches allowed them to advance in the standing table and catch up with us in the lead after reducing the difference to only two points with our team. As I mentioned earlier, during the last three matches, we did not provide the required level except for our match versus Qatar which we won. The offensive line did not provide the required performance and effectiveness, but we are currently, to confirm, still maintaining the top of the league table since the start of the competition until now.
Regarding the Argentinian goalkeeper Burki, who accompanied him during the pre-match press conference, the Frenchman praised his level and emphasized the importance of signing him, saying: I noticed since his arrival that he is an excellent goalkeeper and has ambition. He works hard and has delivered good performances in the QSL matches. I believe he will have a great future in Qatari football. It makes me happy to find that both team goalkeepers are fully prepared, which puts positive pressure on our main goalkeeper Salah to maintain his level. Of course, I encourage Burki because of his ambition, enthusiasm, and qualifications that qualify him to have a bright future in football.
