Al Duhail, Al Rayyan eye Sheikh Jassim Cup glory

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DOHA: Al Duhail, winners of three trophies last season, on Wednesday will take on football giants Al Rayyan in the Sheikh Jassim Cup final at the Al Sadd Stadium. If a clear winner does not emerge in regulation time on Wednesday night then penalties would be played to force a result, organisers said on Tuesday. The match will be officiated by Qatar's top international referee Khamis Al Marri and assisted by Khalid Ayed, Majed Hadiris, Taleb Salem, Abdul Rahman Al Jassim and Khamis Al Kuwari. This is the second time that Al Duhail will meet Al Rayyan in the Super Cup final. The first time was in the 2017 season as Al Duhail took the title after beating Al Rayyan 2-0. Wednesday's match is expected to a high quality game with both teams itching for a win in the season-opener. The clash comes just three days before the start of the QNB Stars League on August 4. Al Duhail will be playing with a new coach in Nabil Maaloul who has replaced Djamel Belmadi. Al Rayyan also have a new coach in Rodolfo Martín Arruabarrena from Argentina. Arruabarrena has come in place of Michael Laudrup. Al Duhail will miss Tunisian captain Yousef Al Massakhi but Morocco's Youssef Al Arabi, Korean star Nam Tae-ee, influential striker Ismail Mohamed, Ali Afif, and Karim Boudeif and Louis Martin will provide the experience in the night clash. Al Rayyan will look to Abderrazak Hamdallah, Mohsen Metwalli and Khalfan Ibrahim for inspiration. The match kicks off at 7:00pm and it will be telecast live on Al Kass Sports Channels.