DOHA - Felix Sanchez, Qatar’s Asian Cup winning coach, said yesterday Al Annabi playing the first match of the 2022 FIFA World Cup would be ‘a great motivation’ for the national squad. The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) on Wednesday announced that Al Bayt Stadium will host the first match of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. “Of course to see the date of the first match and (the entire) schedule proves the competition is not too far away.
It is another motivation for us to be ready and to give a good performance,” Sanchez said in reaction to the match schedule being announced. “It’s nice to know when we start and where,” Sanchez added. Sanchez’s reaction came two days after the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) nominated him among the list of greatest coaches in the history of the Asian Cup after winning the 2019 edition, as part of voting launched by the Federation on its official website.
In the 64-year history of the tournament, only 16 men have won the AFC Asian Cup as a head coach, with countless other talented tacticians trying, and failing, to get their hands on Asian football’s greatest prize. Few observers pencilled Qatar in as pre-tournament favourites for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, but the Sanchez-led side produced a superb month of football to claim a dominant maiden title in the United Arab Emirates.
In the first-ever 24-team AFC Asian Cup, the Qataris were untouchable - winning all seven of their matches, scoring 19 goals and conceding just one as Almoez Ali and Akram Afif dazzled the continent with a s e r i e s o f b r i l l i a n t performances.
With Asian glory achieved, Sanchez is now tasked with leading Qatar at their first FIFA World Cup, which the West Asian country will host in 2022. Meanwhile Talal Al Kaabi, Executive Director of the National Football Teams, yesterday said the opening of the 2022 FIFA World Cup at Al Bayt Stadium, one of the most iconic football facilities in the country, will be 'a milestone for Qatari football'.
He said with Qatar set to play the traditional opening game as the hosts of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the opening match at the new venue will give an added value to the atmosphere.
The World Cup, the first edition to be held in the Arab world, will make the occasion a historic one for the entire region, Al Kaabi said in his remarks released to the media yesterday. He added that the first match for the Qatari squad in 2022 would be a culmination of a long journey that will also take a step into another chapter of memorable matches. He said watching Qatar players appear in front of home crowds would certainly inspire a future generation of players.
