Umm Salal coach Patrice Carteron spoke to the media ahead of their 2023-2024 season Expo Stars League Week 21 match against Al Duhail.

“Our team will do its best to win and continue victories. The victory over Al Arabi in the last round was very important for us.

“I thank the players for the strong performance and fighting spirit presented by the team. The performance was wonderful, especially in the second half, and I am very happy with what the players presented. The season was very difficult, and we faced many challenges during it, but with the efforts of the players we were able to survive. We will go into the Al Duhail match without any pressure.

“All players are ready to face Al Duhail and the players who deserve will start the match in order to prepare for the Amir Cup and the next season as well.

“Part of my responsibility is to give the players the opportunity they deserve, but I always tell them that they need to provide answers on the field, and it is important that they train and go through the matches vigorously in order to prove themselves. It will give them more time to play and therefore facing Al Duhail will be an opportunity for the players to perform their best,” said Carteron.

Umm Salal player Marouane Loudani said, “Al Duhail are one of the strong and organized teams, but our players are determined to achieve a positive result. Our victory in the last round gave the players great confidence and morale boost.

“Winning over Al Arabi gave the players a great motivation and I hope that the whole team will have a good day and perform strongly, and the most important thing is the win and the three points.”