Umm Salal coach Ruben Albes spoke to the media ahead of their 2025-2026 Doha Bank Stars League Week 16 match against Al Sailiya.

“The match against Al Sailiya will be one of the team’s toughest this season, stressing the importance of achieving a positive result to reduce the points gap and move away from the relegation zone.

“The Al Sailiya match is certainly difficult. They are a strong and well-organized team with outstanding players, but we have the ability to close the gap between us and them.

“We aim to capitalize on the significant morale boost the players received after their strong performances against Al Duhail and Al Ahli. Victories bring more confidence and one win leads to another, so we are working to continue our positive results,” said Ruben Albes.

Umm Salal player Antonio Mance said, “This match is worth six points because it is against a direct competitor, so we will enter it with a winning mentality. We study all opponents thoroughly and work to implement the coach’s instructions to achieve a positive result.”