Marc Marquez cleared to ride again, Qatar MotoGP return hopes boosted PAGE 14 TUESDAY, MARCH 16, 2021 QATAR NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM BEGINS TRAINING FOR EUROPEAN QUALIFIERS Qatar national football team players during a training session at the Aspire Zone as they gear up for the European qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2022. The Asian champions will start their campaign in Group A, alongside UEFA Euro 2016 winners Portugal, Serbia, Ireland, Luxembourg and Azerbaijan. The squad is scheduled to fly out to Hungary on March 20th. ‘We are looking forward UEFA Champions League to beating Al Gharafa’ play with three defenders. Al Wakrah coach But they had changed their Lopez sounds a style in their previous match, perhaps because they faced warning to Gharafa strong Al Sadd. “They have a clear idea of ​​ Moenchengladbach’s German midfielder Lars Stindl (centre) gestures TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK the way they want to play and during a training session in Moenchengladbach, Germany, on Monday, DOHA from the previous two games a day ahead of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg they got four points. Now, they match against Manchester City. (AFP) UPBEAT Al Wakrah coach are playing with more confi- Marquez Lopez is confident of dence and great desire, there- his team upstaging Al Gharafa fore this team could pose a Madrid duo with in their 2020-21 season QNB great danger to us. Stars League Week 21 match “Meanwhile, our team is at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa going through a difficult peri- work to do, Bayern Stadium on Tuesday. od in terms of results and per- QNB Stars League’s Week formance. We did not provide 21 matches have been scheduled the required level in the previ- and City seem safe for April 6, but this game was ous match (which we lost 1-3 rescheduled in view of Al Ghara- to Al Ahli). We did not show DPA El Pais. “It doesn’t matter if fa’s play-off with Uzbekistan’s the required desire and did BERLIN you are Sergio Ramos who has FC AGMK in Doha on April 7 for Al Wakrah coach Marquez Lopez during a pre-match media conference on the eve of the QNB Stars not make the effort that would been here longer than anyone a berth in the 2021 AFC Cham- League Week 21 clash against Al Gharafa at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium on Monday. have allowed us to gain points. THE UEFA Champions or Rodrygo or Vinicius.” Pro- pions League group stage. “We made many mistakes League last 16 concludes with gress is difficult forA talanta Exuding confidence ahead should be ‘we are doing well, and now we are required to holders Bayern Munich and but coach Gian Piero Gasper- of the clash, Lopez said, “Our there are three matches left and perform in a different way. I Manchester City having a ini nourishes hopes after play- players have an excellent men- we want to get the most points am confident that our team seemingly simple passage into ing most of the home leg with tality and they work hard and possible’,” said Marquez. is able to perform better. We the quarter-finals but Madrid Remo Freuler dismissed and diligently to continue the series Al Wakrah player Saleh Al must make greater efforts in pair Real and Atletico have conceding only late in the game. of positive results in the remain- Yahri, said, “We want to reap the the next match in order to re- work to do in their second legs. “We really want to test our- ing league matches. And we three points from this important turn to the winning path,” said Record champions Real selves by playing even, if we hope to beat Al Gharafa. match against Al Gharafa in or- Jokanovic. host Atalanta on Tuesday can do something good,” said “We did not get enough rest der to completely stay way from Al Gharafa player Ahmed leading 1-0 from Bergamo but Gasperini, who last season led before this game, but we spared the relegation zone. Alaaeldin said, “The match is having missed the chance to the the Bergamo side to the no effort in order to prepare in “Implementing instruc- an opportunity to correct our kill the tie against 10 men. quarter-finals in their maiden the best possible way so that the tions of the technical staff is path. We need to win in order Atletico head to London a Champions League campaign. series of positive results could very important in achieving to return to the top four and day later having to overturn a Atletico Madrid have a clean continue. Now that the players our goal and all players have satisfy our fans. 1-0 deficit against Chelsea if bill of health as Diego Simeone have recovered from injuries great determination to con- “Al Wakrah are an organ- they are to secure a place in has Jose Gimenez back as an and new players have been re- tinue the positive results. ised team that cares about pos- Friday’s draw for the last eight option in the centre of defence; cruited, the team is in a differ- “Al Gharafa are a good session of the ball. They have and semi-finals. the Uruguayan missed the first ent condition. team, but all teams have weak- young and talented players as City return to Budapest for leg through injury. “We want to beat Al Ghara- nesses. We will try to take ad- well as an outstanding striker their ‘home’ match on Tuesday He can also call on Kieran fa. After that, there is a break vantage of their weaknesses.” in Mohamed Benyettou. Their having alreaady beaten Borus- Trippier who was suspended and we hope that the team gets defence is also strong and we sia Moenchengladbach 2-0 in for the game in Bucharest. the same number of points we We’ve to make greater will do our best to exploit their the Hungarian capital while Chelsea are unbeaten new got last season. In general, we efforts to return to weaknesses in order to win. on Wednesday Bayern will ex- manager Thomas Tuchel’s first are close to achieving our goal winning path: Al Gharafa Al Gharafa coach Slavisa Jokanovic speaks to the media on Monday. “Our chances of reach- pect to ease through against dozen games in charge in all of survival in the top flight, but coach Jokanovic ing the top four still exist and Lazio leading 4-1 from Rome. competitions and their impres- if the players think that the Meanwhile, Al Gharafa efforts to win the match. Lopez) always prefer to con- we must play the next three Liverpool, Porto, Borussia sive form has moved them to team is guaranteed to stay, then coach Slavisa Jokanovic said “Al Wakrah, under their trol the match, possession matches as if they are finals in Dortmund and Paris Saint- fourth domestically - Atletico that will not be good for us. It his team will be making all Spanish coach (Marquez of the ball, and they often order to achieve our goal.” Germain progressed last week. in contrast top La Liga but are Real Madrid are without struggling to cling on to what injured full backs Alvaro Odri- was a once substantial lead. ozola and Dani Carvajal and But Chelsea have netted have Casemiro suspended. just 13 goals in Tuchel’s reign Quick read But the good news for though he is not yet worried coach Zinedine Zidane is but the scoring prowess of No spectators allowed at Tokyo Olympic torch relay start that Sergio Ramos is fit again Timo Werner et al. though Eden Hazard is injured A comeback is nearly im- TOKYO: Spectators have been barred from the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympic torch relay to be held later this month again after his latest comeback possible for Lazio in Munich due to persistent concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, local organizers said on Monday. On March 25, the Tokyo Olympic attempt at the weekend. but Bayern, who went four organizing committee will kick off the torch relay of the postponed Games at the J-Village football training centre near the Fuku- Without Hazard, young points clear in the Bundesliga, shima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, the site of Japan’s worst nuclear accident 10 years ago. However, the opening ceremony Brazilians Rodrygo and Vin- will take nothing for granted and the first section of the 121-day relay “will not be open to the public,” the organizers said. The ceremony will be broadcast icius could start rather than be and could have David Alaba live via a Tokyo 2020 official channel, while the relay will also be streamed live by public broadcaster NHK, they said. The the bench. The latter has spo- back after the Austrian missed Olympic flame will be carried in turns by about 10,000 torchbearers across the nation’s 47 prefectures. The relay ends at ken about the pressure to win their win at Werder Bremen. the July 23 opening ceremony of the Tokyo Games which were delayed 12 months due to the global pandemic. Organizers are things at Real Madrid. Premier League leaders A file photo of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic flame “committed to ensuring the safety and security” of the torch relay by taking countermeasures to prevent the spread of any “There is always pressure Manchester City are likely to displayed outside Fukushima railway station, infections among spectators, locals, participants and staff members, they said. (DPA) and at the biggest club in the shuffle their pack once more in Fukushima Prefecture.