Turki Al-Ali: Al-Sadd is a complete sporting organization

In an interview broadcast on Qatar TV, Al-Sadd general manager Turki Nasser Al-Ali has described the club as “a complete sporting organization” that has specific strategies in every sport.

Speaking during an appearance in the ‘Sports’ talk show, Al-Ali said: “The general manager has an administrative role, and that is to carry out the club’s strategic plan. I don’t interfere in technical matters. I receive recommendations from the coaching staff to help sign players. My job is to make sure the contracts are in order and that they safeguard the rights of the player and the club.”

Regarding the club’s efforts in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), the Al-Sadd general manager said: “Al-Sadd’s CSR plans have continued to develop and succeed. In 2017, we signed a partnership agreement with Aziziyah Youth Centre to provide diverse cultural services. We have implemented 37 social and cultural activities so far. Al-Sadd have also managed to obtain the ISO certification of quality; this is a result of all the work we have been doing since 2016, in accordance with the Ministry of Culture and Sports.”

Al-Ali went on to express his gratitude to the club’s official partner Qatar Airways. “I want to thank Qatar Airways for joining Al-Sadd as our official partner. This partnership will continue for the remainder of this year’s AFC Champions League and can be renewed further. We believe this partnership could enhance our relationship and bring further cooperation between Qatar Airways and Al-Sadd in the future,” said Al-Ali, who also stressed that Al-Sadd are only ranked sixth among the clubs in Qatar when it comes to receiving financial support.

“We have huge ambitions in a variety of fields. We do not just depend on financial support,” added the general manager. “A financial plan has been in place since 2016, with a view to exploiting all the resources and facilities of the club in the optimum manner.”

“The club’s new gym will be the best in Qatar after the renovation. This project and investment comes as part of the club’s financial plan. We expect annual revenues of 13-14 million riyals from it and this could help the club a lot. The gym’s work will finish during the first week of Ramadan, with the men’s section set to open first while the women’s section will begin soon after that.”

As for the on-pitch results, including Al-Sadd’s loss in the league title race, Al-Ali said: “It was sad to lose out in the league title race but we had a good season. During the past year, we won three titles and the team is also performing well in the AFC Champions League. Al-Duhail worked hard and succeeded in lifting the league title; we need to learn from out mistakes in order to compete for the remaining titles this season and to give a good display in the AFC Champions League, in which we hope to go a long way.”

Al-Ali then went on to give an exclusive bit of news about Spanish superstar Xavi. “A primary agreement is in place with Xavi to continue with Al-Sadd for the next two seasons but we haven’t determined what his role will be. He could continue as a player or he could have a different role, which will be announced soon.”

As for Portuguese coach Jesualdo Ferreira, the general manager said: “Ferreira is an excellent coach. His contract runs until the end of the season. Whether he continues is in the hands of the club president and the team management.”

The general manager also spoke about former Al-Sadd star Khalfan Ibrahim, saying that he left the team by choice. “Al-Sadd will remain his home and everyone here is happy with his performances now at Al-Arabi,” said Al-Ali, while adding that injuries have hampered the performances of Khoukhi Bouale, who he described as “an excellent player with lots of potential.”

Regarding the decline in results of the other team sports, Al-Ali said: “The results in other sports have not declined. We are working on a plan as per the vision of HH the President in order to prioritize the young talents. The proof of this is that we won the Annual Excellence Shield for the 17th consecutive year. The successes of the earlier managements always puts under pressure to deliver and maintain the track record.”

“The U-23 team suffered a dip in form because many of its players were called up to the first team, which affected its results although the team was in the top four of the table during the first phase of the league.”

Al-Ali went on to conlcude his appearance on the talk show with a final word to the fans: “I want to thank the Al-Sadd fans for their outstanding support during the training sessions and in the matches.”