The first semi-final will see Qatar Sports Club take on El Jaish and the second one will be the blockbuster between Al Sadd and Lekhwiya.

Qatar SC is the team that put in a strong performance in the second half of the QSL season and finished fourth in the standings.  All credit must go to their head coach Radhi Shenaishil who joined two rounds into the 2014/15 season and who turned around the King’s fortunes.

They will go into today’s clash against El Jaish keen to prove that they belong to the top bracket of clubs in Qatar. Head coach Shenaishil is banking on his team’s ability to play as a collective unit and emerge victorious in this tie. “Team work is going to be our weapon. The strong relationship that exists between the players, the coaches and the management will show in the results. If you watch the team you will see that they are playing very well together. I trust my players will put in a strong performance,” said Shenaishil during the pre-match press conferences yesterday.

While the other three names in the semifinal line-up are giants of Qatari football, Qatar SC is still finding its footing but Shenaishil believes his team has the ability to get to the final. “El Jaish is a great team. They have a great management, a great coach and also many national team players in their squad.Just like Al Sadd and Lekhwiya they need to win titles to achieve their potential. We believe that we can stop El Jaish but that will need a lot of concentration from us. The team will be ready for the match.  At the very least, we aim to reach the final,” added Shenaishil. 

Qatar SC’s opponents, El Jaish, haven’t had a great QSL season by their standards. They claimed the final AFC Champions League spot, only on the last day of the season. They were knocked out of this season’s Asian Champions League campaign. The Emir Cup is their only chance this season to reclaim some glory and prove that they belong to Qatar’s elite clubs.



El Jaish thrashed Al Rayyan 5-1 in the quarter-finals but Head Coach Sabri Lamouchi doesn’t see it as a particularly good result. “It was a fantastic game for you guys but not for me. We were lucky in that game. Rayyan lost chances to score in the first half. We had a terrible first half. If we play like that against Qatar SC, then we won’t reach the final,” said Lamouchi yesterday.

“Our opponents are a very difficult team to play against. It’s important for us to focus right from the start. Not like the last match against Al Rayyan. But our players are determined to reach the final and win the Emir Cup,” he added.

Lamouchi also stressed that the final of the Emir Cup is like no other and this is why his team was eager to get there. “For me, most important game in Qatar is the final of the Emir Cup. The stadium is full of people. HH the Emir will be there. For players and for coaches like me, this final is the most important game of the season. In my team only two players have won this Cup and only three players have played in the final. In Qatar only the Emir Cup can give you this feeling of trepidation and yearning to succeed.”