Sports
A date with history for hosts and debutants Qatar
A date with history for hosts and debutants Qatar
October 06, 2022 | 09:48 PM
Asian champions, FIFA World Cup debutants, host nation, unknown quantity, or the single most prepared side in the tournament? It is safe to say there are many battling, and at times contrasting, narratives surround Qatar national team going into what will in all cases be a historic tournament for them. Not since Italy in 1934 has any nation hosted the FIFA World Cup having never qualified to the competition, and Qatar will want to avoid the fate of South Africa, who remain the only host country to be eliminated in the group stage. But with only Saudi Arabia and Ghana ranked below them in the most recent World Ranking among the 32 teams, the odds are stacked against them.An unfancied side even at continental level, Qatar had never progressed past the quarter-finals in the AFC Asian Cup until 2019. But Felix Sanchez’s men proved to be a different breed to their predecessors, taking the tournament by storm and cruising to their maiden title with a string of performances that saw them concede only one goal as they bagged 16 and defeated four former champions in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Korea Republic and Japan to lift a fully deserved title. With no involvement in the Asian Qualifiers as hosts, the Maroon filled the past couple of years by participating in the CONMEBOL Copa America Brazil 2019, the CONCACAF Gold Cup 2021 and the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021, reaching the semi-finals of the latter two. A generation of players whose entire career was built around preparing for Qatar 2022 will be under immense pressure to perform, but with an unmatched level of stability and big crowds behind them this winter, anything is possible.Sanchez’s approach and tactics
October 06, 2022 | 09:48 PM