Olunga is a good addition to the team, says Al Duhail coach

Al-Duhail SC Coach Sabri Lamouchi has praised his new signing Kenyan international Michael Olunga.

Ahead of another crucial Qatar Stars League (QSL) fixture against Qatar SC slated for Tuesday, the Frenchman said the centre-forward “presented a good match” on his debut during last week’s top-of-the-table clash against Al-Sadd.

“He (Olunga) did not show his known scoring power, but he is a good addition to the team. He was the top scorer in Japanese league and is trying to adapt with his teammates,” he added.

Olunga,26, was welcomed to QSL with a 3-1 loss against Al-Sadd on January 12.

Almoez Ali scored Al-Duhail’s consolation from the spot. Olunga took to the field just one day after joining the Qatari champions from Kashiwa Reysol for Sh798.4 million (Euros 6 million) and one week after the conclusion of Japan’s 2020 season on January 4. 

Lamouchi included Olunga in his starting line-up and gave him 66 minutes. 

'Engineer' will be keen to open his account with a goal after committing his future at the club for three years on January 16. 

Olunga netted 28 goals last season for Kashiwa on his way to winning the Golden Boot award and Player of the Year in Japan. He  is the most expensive player to leave J-League in the current January transfer window. 

Kashiwa made a cool Sh420 million for selling him to the Fifa Club World Cup-bound Al-Duhail. The Japanese side bought him from Chinese outfit Guizhou Zhicheng Hengfeng for Sh380 million (Euros 2.84 million) on August 10, 2018. 

Against Qatar SC, Lamouchi has admitted it will be another ‘difficult’ match. He has urged his charges to compensate for the loss against Al-Sadd.

“Qatar SC also lost against Al-Rayyan, so they will come strongly. We have to be very focused to achieve the desired result,” he is quoted on Al-Duhail SC's website.

Al-Duhail will head into the fixture without a defeat against Qatar SC in three back-to-back matches. They won the last two with a combined score of 3-1. Before that, the two had drawn 0-0. All the three matches took place in 2020. 

The last time Al-Duhail was beaten by Qatar SC was a 1-0 loss at home in November 2019. They had triumphed 2-1 away three months earlier. 

Olunga’s side has bagged six wins out of their last seven visits at Qatar SC.

However, both of them take to the field wounded and keen to bounce back. from defeats in their respective last league matches.

Qatar SC suffered the same fate as Al-Duhail against Al-Rayyan on January 12. Al-Duhail ranks second in the 12-team league with 27 points from 14 matches, four points from fourth-placed Qatar SC.

With the battle for next season’s Asian Champions League places far from over, Al-Duhail will seek to maintain second place with a win.