Title in Qatar’s sights as they take on Syria

Qatar will have to be at their best if they are to wrap up the International Friendship Championship title in Basra when they take on Syria in their second and last match of the tournament today.
Having already beaten Iraq in the opening match, a second straight win in the three-nation event will give Qatar an insurmountable six points.
That will mean Iraq and Syria will battle it out on Tuesday for the second place in the final match of the tournament which was put in place after the FIFA ban on Iraqi cities hosting international matches was lifted.
Qatar coach Felix Sanchez expressed his admiration for the Syrian team who won the hearts of fans with their inspiring displays during the qualifying stages of the World Cup, eventually falling agonisingly short of the target.
“Syria no doubt is an outstanding team and we will have to be at our best to beat them,” Sanchez told reporters at a press conference yesterday.
“They have a new coach (Bernd Stange) who will be keen to make an impression with the team. Also they have some strong players who can be a threat to any team,” he noted.
Qatar and Syria clashed twice during the qualifying phases of this year’s World Cup in Russia with each team winning a game.
Stange, 70, who came out of retirement in January to take charge of Syria, has coached East Germany, Oman, Iraq, Singapore and Belarus in addition to several club teams during his long career.
“I have seen Syria perform in the past but it remains to be seen what changes Stange makes to their style of play,” said Sanchez.
The Spaniard added that he used yesterday’s training session to assess the fitness of the players to ensure that the best eleven get to start the match.
“I also emphasised to the players the importance of avoiding the mistakes we made during the match against Iraq,” he said, referring to the first match which Qatar won 3-2.
Sanchez added that he had complete confidence in his team.
“All the players in the Qatar team are very competitive. They don’t like to lose. They are aware of their duties and responsibilities as they proved against Iraq in the first match.”
Sanchez was also impressed by the atmosphere in Basra.
“Ever since we landed here I’ve seen only positive things. The atmosphere has been fantastic and people are very passionate about football. The organisers made sure we are comfortable at every stage of our stay here.”
Syria coach Stange predicted an “enjoyable” game although he rued the absence of several regular players because of injuries.
“I cannot promise anything as I took charge only 10 days ago. I am still in the process of figuring out who our best players are but I am sure it will be an enjoyable match,” the German said.
Meanwhile, Qatar Football Association President Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed al-Thani attended the team’s training session to boost the morale of the players.