Qatar coach Felix Sanchez has said his team is preparing well for the upcoming FIFA Arab Cup as the reigning Asian champions are targeting a title triumph in front of home fans.
The hosts, who are seeking a maiden title, are in Group A of the tournament along with Bahrain, Oman, and Iraq. They will meet Bahrain in their opening match on November 30 at the brand new Al Bayt Stadium – a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 venue – which will be inaugurated ahead of the kickoff.
Qatar will square off with Oman on December 3 before taking on Iraq in their final group match on December 6. Al Annabi is currently undergoing a training camp in Spain following their tough campaign in the European Qualifiers.
They met Portugal, Ireland, Serbia, Luxembourg, and Azerbaijan during the event, which Sanchez believes gave them the best preparations ahead of the Arab Cup.
Qatar, though, is on an eight-match winless streak going into the tournament, the coach is confident of a good performance from his ranks, who qualified for the CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals as debutants, earlier this year. “We will show good performance and show our ability to the other competing teams,” Sanchez told beIN Sports in an interview.
The Qatar coach said his team will do their best to make their fans proud of the national side. “We want to reach the highest level in this tournament. Normally, we want to have a good role in the tournament, for everyone to get to know Qatar’s National Team and feel proud of it. We strive to compete for the title, but we must be ready to achieve that,” adding: “The tournament will be difficult, as all participating teams are keen to win the title”.
Meanwhile, discussing his life in Qatar, Sanchez noted: “I moved to Qatar 15 years ago, and since then the country has seen a lot of developments - I am very happy here”.
The coach announced a full-strength Qatar squad for the Arab Cup this week, welcoming back captain Hassan Al Haydos, who missed the team’s last two matches in Europe due to an injury.
The national squad also includes Asian Cup 2019 top scorer Almoez Ali, feared striker Akram Afif and seasoned Abdelkarim Hassan besides Al Duhail star Bassam Al Rawi.
Qatar Squad: Saad Al Sheeb, Meshaal Barsham, Yousof Hassan, Pedro Miguel, Abdelkarim Hassan, Mohammed Waad, Tarek Salman, Ahmed Alaaeldin, Ali Asad, Mohammed Muntari, Hassan Al Haydos, Akram Afif, Almoez Ali, Karim Boudiaf, Musaab Khedir, Bassam Al Rawi, Homam Al Amin, Boualem Khoukhi, Ismail Mohammed, Khalid Muneer, Abdullah Al Ahrak, Assim Madibo
