The Qatari side have fallen off the pace in their domestic league where they sit sixth in the table but some 13 points behind leaders Lekhwiya after 17 matches.

After drawing their opening match against Esteghlal in Asia’s premier club competition a fortnight ago they host Uzbekistan’s Pakhtakor on Wednesday night looking to claim an important home win.

"I think it is difficult for us to do anything in the domestic league,” Kareem said.

“We can’t go and win it. We've been going down. We've lost hope but we can do something in the Champions League. We can put on a good show against Pakhtakor.

"We play this team (Pakhtakor) and then Al Nassr (of Saudi Arabia). So we have two tough matches but first we concentrate on Pakhtakor.”

Kareem is only a novice when it comes to the AFC Champions League but with some veteran heads around him, the defender believes Al Sadd can make their mark on the competition.

"This would be my second game, but we have players with a lot of experience," he added.

"Our players are used to the pressure of playing big matches, but we know they too are experienced but we are ready for them.”

Boss Jorge Fossati is eager to avoid the mistakes his team was guilty of during their previous Qatar Super League match at home to league strugglers Umm Salal, which they lost 1-0.

"Pakhtakor is not Umm Salal - we can't make the same mistakes,” the former Qatar coach said.

“We need to put on an improved performance. We respect our opponents but we can do damage tomorrow.

"We have the confidence of playing at home. We've put in the hard work (since the 1-1 draw against Esteghlal).

“This is a different game against a different opponent. We can do it.”

Pakhtakor coach Ravshan Haydarov hinted that his side will stay true to the aggressive style that has proved effective for them.

"We will play our style football - just the way the Uzbekistan played in the Asian Cup (when they reached the semi-finals)."

The Asian Cup was also played on Qatar soil earlier this year and Haydarov is confident of more Uzbek success in the Gulf nation.

“It will be a tough match because Qatari clubs play well on home soil. They have good players, especially the overseas players,” he said.

"We know their strengths and weaknesses because we have watched them play, but we have experience of playing in Doha because I have been with my team here before.

“I don't have any major injury concerns and the ones who had niggling injuries have recovered for this match."