Qatar still has a lot of players from the Asian Cup winning squad four years ago, with Almoez Ali, the highest goal scorer in that edition, being the highlight.
Qatar came the centre of global football in December 2022 when Lionel Messi led Argentina to FIFA World Cup glory after 36 times at the Lusail Stadium.
Football, still, lives little in the history, and 13 months latterly, the Arabian nation looks to come another centre- point of transnational football, this time at the international position, hosting the AFC Asian Cup starting hereafter at the same venue.
“Qatar is ready to drink the stylish brigades from Asia to what we hope will be the best- ever edition of the AFC Asian Cup. Our colosseums and sporting structure are set to deliver a memorable event to players and suckers, ” Hassan Al Kuwari, the Marketing and Communications Executive Director of the Original Organising Committee, said.
The host will enter the event, eyeing not just the bragging rights of hosting it for a record third time but also as the defending champion.
As it faces an inconsistent Lebanon side in the nature, it’ll look to lick its injuries of the citable World Cup crusade, in which it also played the opening institution, losing it to Ecuador with a 0- 2 score line.
The platoon still has a lot of players from the Asian Cup winning squad four times agone, with Almoez Ali, the loftiest goal scorer in that edition, being the highlight. And his cooperation with Akram Afif will be the primary thing for Lebanon to stop.
“I suppose the 2019 generation has raised our position of anticipation– we’re always needed to win in any competition we play in, ” Qatar’s captain Hassan Al- Haydos told the journalists on the dusk of the match.
“It raises the bar and gives us a challenge, but the challenge is the real flavour of football. I hope the new generation of players can deal with this pressure. ”
Also, the platoon has moved on from head trainer Felix Sanchez who led them to the Asian title and has also shown the door to reputed Portuguese director Carlos Queiroz, hardly a month before the launch of the event.
It’s then – thickness under a particular trainer – that the platoon remains vulnerable and will be hopeless to find quick results under “ Tintin ” Marquez Lopez, who has strived in the domestic Qatar league, guiding Al Wakrah to creation in 2019.
“It’s a challenge, and not an easy challenge, ” the former Espanyol man told journalists, “ But what distinguishes this trip is that I’ve worked in Qatar for a long time, and I know the players and how they act on the pitch. ”
Lebanon, on the other hand, has returned to the head trainer who took it to its first- ever Asian Cup crusade in 2019 – Miodrag Radulovic.
After a rather inconsistent spell under Aleksandar Ilic and a brief stint under Nikola Jurcevic, the platoon led by expert Hassan Maatouk, will now try to ameliorate right from where it ended its maiden appearance in the event – a group stage exit.
“Yes, we’ve had a short time for medication, but I know this group veritably well, ” he said, “ I believe in our bents, and we will do our stylish to represent Lebanese football. ” Know More Latest Football News…
