Doha: Tunisian star Hannibal Mejbri has given thumbs up to Qatar’s “perfect” organisation of the FIFA World Cup, saying hosting of the first football showpiece in the Arab world is making people of the region proud.
Speaking to The Peninsula at the adidas brand media center at Aspire Zone, the promising midfielder said he’ll take back a lot of good memories from Qatar and added the host country has made flawless arrangements to host the participating teams.
“As professional footballers we need some good facilities and we got them in Qatar,” said Mejbri, who plays for Birmingham City, on loan from the Manchester United.
“We had everything close to us. The hotel was perfect, the gym was good and the pool was also very good (smiles). Food was good everything was perfect in Qatar. There was nothing to be complained about and that was for me a great experience,” he said.
The 19-year-old said the World Cup is presenting a real image of the Qatari culture and the Arab world.
“I am very happy because this World Cup in Qatar has given an opportunity to show a lot of good things in the Arab world. Qatar is a very nice country with rich culture and I am very happy to be a part of this World Cup in Qatar,” he said.
Mejbri was a part of Tunisian squad that was in Group D along with title-holders France, Denmark and Australia.
The Carthage Eagles had a bright start playing an impressive draw against Denmark in their opening Group D match before they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Australia after Mitchell Duke’s strike in the first half.
The Jalel Kadri-coached side, however, bounced back to register a remarkable 1-0 victory over reigning champions France after a brilliant goal by Tunisia captain Wahbi Khazri.
“I think it’s 10 out of 10 because we won 1-0 against France, who are the reigning world champions and are one of the best teams in the world,” Mejbri said of the memorable victory.
Tunisia, however, were eliminated with France and Australia advancing to the knockout stage from the group.
“We did our maximum but unfortunately we didn’t qualify for the Round of 16 but that happens in football. I think we played two very good games against Denmark and France but we didn’t play well in the first half against Australia,” he said.
“Football is a tough sport and if you lag behind even for a short period you will have to pay and Australia did a very good job in that game.”
Mejbri thanked Tunisian fans for giving overwhelming support to the team during their matches.
“There are a lot of Tunisians in Qatar and we received a lot of support from them during our matches which was very good for us. The atmosphere was very good during our matches,” he said.
When asked which team he thinks would win the World Cup,” he replied: “To be honest, I want my friends to win the World Cup so after we meet I can say we won the World Cup. Hopefully the best team wins.”
