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Al Wasl take on Al Muharraq of Bahrain tonight in the last GCC Clubs stage match

 

The Dubai-based Al Wasl Football Team are only one step away from snatching the GCC Clubs Championship 2012 trophy for the second time in their history when they take on the Bahraini visiting team Al Muharraq in the second leg match which will be held tonight at Zabeel Stadium in Dubai, kick off at 7:50pm. The hosts, Al Wasl beat their rivals 3-1 in the first leg game played in Manama last Tuesday to strengthen their hopes to win this edition. They were crowned champions of the 25th GCC Clubs title in 2010 and are seeking their second achievement to become the 7th GCC club to win this championship twice and the second in UAE besides their city team Al Shabab who won the GCC trophy twice before. But if Al Wasl succeed to make it this evening, it will be the first achievement in Argentinean legend Diego Maradona’s history. Maradona had won a number of trophies with many clubs he had played for and with Argentine National Football Team as well, but never captured any cup during his career as a coach.

On the other side, Al Muharraq are trying to make a history out of this game as it is their first time to qualify to the final stage in this championship, and in spite of losing 1-3 at home, but they are trying to keep their hopes alive relying on surprises in the world of football and armed with the expertise of a group of players who play for the Bahraini International Football Team.

Maradona will depend in today’s encounter on five players in the midfield namely Rashid Essa, Donda, Khalifa Abdullah, Marsier and Essa Ali. The team’s Uruguayan player Olivera will spearhead the attacks with Darwish Ahmed, Yasser Salim, Waheed Ismail and Mubarak Hassan in the defense line and Majid Nasser as goalkeeper.

Al Wasl will miss today the efforts of their Iranian forward Mohammed Reza Khalatbari after Carlos Queiroz coach of the Iranian National Football Team refused to release him and recalled on the player to join his National Team immediately to take part in the 2014 World Cup qualifying match against Qatar scheduled for Tuesday, June 12.Khalatbari scored the all-important goal in Iran's 1-0 victory over Uzbekistan in the first leg game played last week in Asia Zone final-round qualifiers.

The team, who will win the 27th edition, will get a cash prize amounting to one million Saudi Riyals and the runner up will receive half a million Saudi riyals.