Al-Gharafa admits its mistakes after its loss to Al-Hilal in the opening of the AFC Elite Champions League

Uruguayan Fabricio Diaz, the Qatari Al-Gharafa player, confirmed that his team’s mistakes were the direct reason behind the loss to Al-Hilal (2-1) in the opening of the two teams’ campaign in the AFC Elite Champions League.

Diaz said in statements to Asharq Al-Awsat: Yes, the match was very difficult. We know very well that Al Hilal has an excellent team and players of very high quality.

He continued: I think we made mistakes during the match, and that made all the difference and was the main reason behind our loss today. But now we have to continue working and focusing, and we will see what comes out of that in the future.

Serbian Sergej Savic, Al Hilal player, expressed his great happiness after launching the continental campaign with a victory over Al Gharafa of Qatar (2-1).

Savic said during the press conference after the confrontation: A good start for us in the tournament. We achieved an important victory, and we created many chances throughout the match, and although we conceded a goal in the last minute, I am very happy to get the three points.

The Hilali midfielder added about his continental ambition with the team: During my career with the team, we did not succeed in achieving the Asian title, and this year we will strive with all strength and diligence to win it.

Savic concluded his statements by talking about his satisfaction with the club, saying: I am very happy to be at Al Hilal Club, and with the step of renewing my contract with the club during the recent period.

Italian Simone Inzaghi, coach of Al Hilal, expressed his satisfaction with his team’s perfect start in the AFC Elite Champions League following its victory over Al Gharafa of Qatar.

Inzaghi said during the press conference after the match: It was a tough match against a team that defended greatly, but in the end we were able to score and did exactly what was required of us.

He added: We were not supposed to concede the goal in the last moments. We tried our best to get a clean sheet, but we had no success.

In response to a question about his assessment of Simon Bouabry’s level and the reason for his replacement during the match, the Al Hilal coach explained: He was suffering from some minor muscle tension, so I preferred to replace him. He is a player with very high skills and abilities who performs excellently on the field.

Inzaghi touched on the club’s support for Ruben Neves after the Al-Taawoun match incident, saying: We are all very close to the player Nevez, and we tried to contain him and support him after what happened. It was unfortunate, but in the end Neves knows very well that we all stand around him and support him.

Regarding the absences, Al Hilal’s technical director noted: Salem Al-Dosari, Theo Hernandez, and Ali Lagami are very important players for the team, and we hope that they will return to readiness and participate with us after the international break ends.

He continued: We added a number of new players to the team roster during the last period to raise the team’s level and increase competitiveness, especially Mohamed Mahzri, who provided us with an excellent solution in the right-back position, which we suffered a lot from last season.

Simone Inzaghi concluded the press conference, saying: We started the season very well. We achieved 8 victories against only one loss, and we will make every effort to continue teamwork to fight the remaining entitlements and confrontations to come.