Qatar’s Al Arabi will meet Al Rifaa of Bahrain in the Group B clash of the Gulf Club Champions League at the Khalifa Sports City Stadium in Bahrain today. Al Arabi will go into the clash aiming for a win to shore up their position from currently being third with one point, following a 1-1 draw against Qadsia in the opening match. Al Riffa are fourth with no points after they lost 1-3 to Al Ettifaq, who lead the group with three points.
Al Arabi coach Anthony Hudson will be looking for his side to iron out flaws and strike with full force against Rifaa, after his team suffered 1-3 loss to Al Gharafa in the Qatar Stars League last week.
Hudson said yesterday: “We are very excited to play this match and it is a big challenge for us. We have some players absent players but I have great confidence in the group to do the best and achieve victory.”
He added: “Riffa is a strong team and we have sufficient information about it. We will do our best to achieve victory despite the difficulty of the match.”
The tournament returns after a gap of nine years since the last edition in 2015 when the UAE’s Al Shabab were the champions. This time, eight teams, divided into two groups, are competing on a home-and-away basis. The top two sides from each group will qualify for the semi-finals.
Al Arabi coach Anthony Hudson.
