FORMULA 1 | Page 4 AATHLETICSTHLETICS | Page 6 Hamilton Thompson back on pole blazes to year’s for Spanish best 100m Grand Prix in Shanghai Sunday, May 14, 2017 FOOTBALL Sha’baan 18, 1438 AH Aft er EPL title, GULF TIMES Chelsea boss Conte sets sights on FA Cup SPORT Page 2 FOOTBALL/ EMIR CUP Tabata the star as Rayyan power into Emir Cup fi nal Sheikh Jassim Cup and Qatar Stars League champions Lekhwiya miss out on treble chance after 3-1 defeat By Joe Koraith Doha ekhwiya were the in-form team coming into the match, while Al Rayyan were coming off a nail-biting loss. But it was Al Rayyan who produced a strong sec- Lond-half performance to defeat Lekhwiya 3-1 Al Rayyan’s Sergio Garcia (L) and in the fi rst semi-fi nal of the 2017 Emir Cup. Rodrigo Tabata celebrate after the A brace from Rodrigo Tabata and a Musaab latter scored his second goal of the Khodor strike helped the Lions down the Red match against Lekhwiya yesterday. Knights. The match held yesterday at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium was predicted to be a tough aff air between these two football giants in Qatar. Lekhiwya, fl ying high after having pro- gressed to the AFC Champions League Round of 16, didn’t start with the regular eleven. But despite that, they were a dominant force in the fi rst half. They had a couple of chances but couldn’t convert them. Al Rayyan were com- petitive but weren’t able to trouble the Lekhi- wya defence too much. But all of that changed in the second half. There were a host of changes at the break. Le- khwiya coach Djamel Belamdi brought on key But two minutes later, Al Rayyan wrestled striker Youssef Msakni for Abdelrahaman Mo- back the lead, thanks to the individual bril- hamed. He also replaced Assim Madibo with liance of Tabata. Mohamed Tresor fouled Luiz Martin in the midfi eld to ensure more at- Ahmed Alaaeldin and the referee gave a tacks. free-kick right at the edge of the box. Tabata And right at the start of the second half, stepped up and curled the ball past the outside Msakni came close to opening the scoring but of the ball to deposit the ball in the far corner his shot was saved by the Al Rayyan goalkeeper of the goal, past Burhan at full stretch. Omar Barri. Tabata is known for his brilliant free-kicks It was time for more tactical changes as Al and he delivered once more. The position- Rayyan coach Michael Laudrup brought on ing of the Lekhwiya wall seemed incorrect Sergio Garcia in place of Abdulrahman al- though. Harzy and Belmadi replaced Ali Afi f with his Lekhwiya tried to hit back and didn’t give midfi eld star Nam Tae-Hee. The match turned up. They were enjoying a fair bit of posses- out to be livelier after that. sion in the Al Rayyan half but couldn’t fi nd the In the 61st minute Tabata let loose a curler back of the net. Instead, as they were searching that missed the post by inches. Lekhwiya goal- for the equalizer, it was Tabata who scored his keeper Qasem Burhan wouldn’t have been able second goal of the match. to stop it. Then four minutes later the Al Rayy- In the 91st minute, a counter-attack from an skipper turned provider, probably unin- Al Rayyan saw Garcia cross the ball for Tabata tentionally. Clever link-up play saw Sebastian and the Qatar player chipped the ball over Bur- Soria pass the ball to Tabata who nutmegged han to seal the victory for his team. Ahmed Yasser and was planning to run around Lekhwiya’s dream of a domestic treble has him but Musaab Khodor was in the right place, been ended by Rayyan. They now have the at the right time and he slotted the ball into the Asian Champions League to attend to. For Al goal. Rayyan, they are now in the fi nal of the Emir Al Rayyan had a lead which had looked un- Cup and one match away from winning a tro- likely considering the early passage of play. phy this season. Lekhwiya continued mounting attacks and Al Rayyan fans, who had as usual turned up were fi nally rewarded in the 78th minute when in large numbers to support their team yester- Msakni got to the end of a clever pass from Al Rayyan fans cheer their team on during the match. Top right, Al Rayyan coach Michael Laudrup is a happy man after his team’s victory. day, will be happy with their team’s perform- Nam Tae-hee and scored the equaliser. PICTURES: Noushad Thekkayil ance. FOCUS Lamouchi keen to end El Jaish stint on a high By Joe Koraith will take part. Today they take on Al Al Rayyan. In the 2016 AFC Champi- Ahmed Moeen – who was named Doha Sadd in the semi-fi nal, knowing that ons League season, they reached as far Player of the tournament when Qatar it could be their last match. Knowing as the semi-fi nals where they ended won the AFC U17 championships in that this could be the end could have up losing to UAE’s Al Ain. All in all, an 2014. ootball provides everyone in- contrasting reactions in people. Jaish impressive record for any coach. “Ahmed Moen is a great example. volved with a lot of highs and coach Sabri Lamouchi is hoping that For Lamouchi though, the best This young player had a great Asian lows. That’s the nature of his team will end on a high. trophy is something else. “We have Champions League campaign. He’s sport. There are wins that we The Frenchman arrived for the Emir achieved a lot with the club, the a young Qatari player and I hope he Fjoyfully celebrate and there are losses Cup semi-fi nal pre-match press con- Champions League semi-fi nals, the does even better for his country dur- that we sulk about – players, coaches ference looking dapper in a waistcoat Qatar Cup title, reaching the fi nal of ing the 2022 World Cup. He’s not only and fans alike. These are normal sce- and with his entire support staff in the Emir Cup, a second place in the a good player but also a smart player. narios that the world of football regu- tow. “I hope this isn’t my last press League. But the best part for me is I am lucky to be his coach,” said the larly experiences. But there are times conference in Qatar…” was how he that all clubs in Qatar want my play- 45-year-old. when the game throws up an unex- began the press conference. He then ers,” said the Frenchman. Lamouchi said that he was happy pected and unfortunate situation. proceeded to thank his support staff “I am proud to be the coach of this to have got this opportunity to have From the next Qatar Stars League and players for their role during his set of players. I hope when people look come to Qatar as a coach. “It has been season, one famous team will no long- time with Jaish. back at my time with Jaish, they see a great experience for me and my staff . er be part of Qatar’s football scene. El Lamouchi came to El Jaish in 2014 progress,” he added. I am happy to have been here with Jaish have been merged with Lekhwiya and the team have had a successful run Lamouchi hoped that local, young Jaish and in Qatar. Thank you to eve- to form Al Duhail. Jaish will be dis- with him at the helm. They won the players who have played under his tu- ryone for the support over the two and banded and the players, coaches and 2016 Qatar Cup. In the 2017 edition, telage would go on to do great things a half years,” he concluded. support staff will now have to move on they lost to Sadd in the fi nal. They for Qatar. He said that he was lucky to Now to see if Jaish players can give to other teams. were Emir Cup runners-up in 2015. In have coached many talented young- Lamouchi one more press conference The ongoing Emir Cup tournament the 2015-16 QSL season, they ended sters during his tenure with El Jaish. to attend by helping the team qualify is the last tournament where El Jaish up in second position, behind winners He cited the example of Qatari player for the fi nal. Gulf Times 2 Sunday, May 14, 2017 FOOTBALL PREMIER LEAGUE Aft er title, Chelsea boss Conte sets sights on FA Cup glory Italian now has his eyes on completing the Double with victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup final at Wembley on May 27 AFP West Bromwich, United Kingdom ven as he nursed a thick lip and lament- ed his sodden suit amid the mayhem of Chelsea’s Premier League title celebra- tions, Antonio Conte was already tar- Egeting his next trophy bid. The Chelsea manager said his players should enjoy the success they clinched with a 1-0 win at West Bromwich Albion on Friday to give him glory in his fi rst season in charge. But the Ital- ian now has his eyes on completing the Double with victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup fi nal at Wembley on May 27.