Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
How they qualified: Runners-up - Qatar Stars League 2010-11
Established 1979
Nickname Al Fuhud (The Cheetahs)
Home stadium Thani bin Jassim Stadium (25,000)
Website www.algharafa.com
Club Honours
Qatar league champions 7 - 1992, 98, 2002, 05, 08, 09, 10
Emir Cup winners 6 - 1995, 96, 97, 98, 2002, 09
Previous ACL appearances
2003 - 3rd Qualifying Round
2006 - Group stage
2008 - Group stage
2009 - Group stage
2010 - Quarter-finals
2011 - Group stage
Having been a dominant force in Qatari club football in the past half-decade, Al Gharafa appear to be on the wane after a poor run of form in the Qatar Stars League this season.
The Cheetahs have finished no lower than second in the league since the 2005-06 season. But they slipped badly down the table in 2011-12 after they started the campaign badly with only one win in their first eight games.
To bolster the squad after their bad start, French coach Bruno Metsu brought in veteran Iranian forward Farhad Majidi and signed Ivory Coast striker Aruna Dindane from Lekhwiya in January. The new faces have settled quickly at the club, particularly Majidi, who has found his scoring range and netted some crucial goals for the club in their recent matches.
While Al Gharafa will want to improve on their current sixth place in the league, they will also be keen to make an impression in the AFC Champions League after another disappointing early exit last year.
Having reached the quarter-finals a year earlier, they failed once again to get past the group stage for the fourth time in five attempts after finishing well behind Sepahan and Al Hilal in their section.
Expectations
With the league title seemingly out of reach this season, Al Gharafa can turn their focus towards reaching the knockout stage of the AFC Champions League for only the second time in their history. It will not be easy for the Doha club in a tough-looking group that appears to be too close to call.
Coach
Bruno Metsu
Frenchman Bruno Metsu shot to international fame when he led unfancied Senegal to a surprise appearance in the World Cup quarter-finals in 2002. He followed that up by leading Al Ain to victory in the inaugural AFC Champions League in 2003 and coaching the United Arab Emirates to their first ever Gulf Cup title in 2007. He took charge of Al Gharafa for a second time last March after taking Qatar through to the quarter-finals of the AFC Asian Cup.
Did you know?
The club was formed in 1979 as Al Etehad and they competed in the inaugural AFC Champions League in 2002-03 under that name but lost 6-4 on aggregate to Pakhtakor in the qualifying rounds. They officially changed their name in early 2004 to honour their home district of Al Gharafa and the switch appears to have brought plenty of good fortune to the club who have won four league titles in the past seven seasons.
Key Player
Lawrence Quaye
Born in Ghana, midfielder Lawrence Quaye represented Qatar in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup finals after being naturalised in the Gulf state following several years with Al Gharafa. The 27-year-old joined the Qatari club in 2004 and he has enjoyed great success there, winning four league titles and playing in five editions of the AFC Champions League in the past eight years.