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AFC Asian Cup: Mabrook Qatar! FIFA 2022 World Cup hosts win hearts and battle

The match held amidst high political tension has few parralels as their juggernaut in the tournament continues with Al Annabi having reached their maiden final.

Qatar

Bengaluru/Doha, January 30: Qatar deserves full credit for the resounding 4-0 victory against the UAE in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup semifinal, which was achieved against all odds.

The match held amidst high political tension has few parralels as their juggernaut in the tournament continues with Al Annabi having reached their maiden final in the continental competition -- that too unbeaten and even without conceding a single goal.

Al Duhail striker Almoez Ali enhanced his growing reputation by equalling Ali Daei's long-standing record for most goals in an AFC Asian Cup.

Whatever happens against Japan on Friday (February 1) in the final is a going to be a different matter altogether. But the maroon brigade can take pride from the manner in which they kept their cool and conducted themselves during the course of the tournament in the UAE.

Receiving end

Receiving end

In the semifinal, they were at the receiving end right throughout the 90 minutes of play. They were booed by a partisan crowd right from the moment the Qatar national anthem was played.

It did not end there. Sandals and water bottles were thrown at them when Qatar scored and choicest of abuses were hurled by local crowd during the course of the match. Yet Qatar did not respond and with a regal mien and poise shut out their opponents out of the contest.

Lot of emotions

Lot of emotions

Qatar's coach Felix Sanchez summed up the feelings quite aptly. "I think the game was a difficult one with a lot of emotions and we were not feeling very comfortable in the beginning," said the Spaniard.

"But we were able to manage to score twice. "Obviously in the second half the opposition tried to attack more and they put all their offensive talented players in front, but the team was very solid, relaxed and compact," added the former Barcelona youth coach, who has been with the team for the last one-and-a-half years.

Terrific performance

Terrific performance

Right from the start of the tournament, the FIFA 2022 World Cup hosts were put through a lot of trouble by the UAE. From denying Doha-based journalists the right to cover the tournament, to issuing provocative statements and finally preventing non-Emiratis from buying tickets for the high-voltage semifinal, the UAE tried every trick to unsettle the opposition.

Perhaps it was the fallout of the blockade imposed by Gulf countries against Qatar (which has been there since June, 2017) that may have forced the Emirates nation to resort to such primitive practices.

But with their terrific performance which has seen them become the first team in the AFC Asian Cup history to go six games without giving up a goal, Qatar has clearly given a send a stern warning to their Gulf rivals not to mix sports with politics.

No overboard celebrations

No overboard celebrations

That was quite evident even in the way the country celebrated its march into its maiden AFC Asian Cup final. The celebrations never went overboard.

Barring the usual flag waving and cheering, there were no abuses hurled nor any ill-will feelings to be conveyed to the crestfallen opposition.

For those who doubted Qatar's credentials after the first-round loss in Australia four years back where they lost all group matches, Al Annabi have comeback strongly and silenced all those critics. Congrats Qatar! As they say in Arabic Mabrook Qatar!

Story first published: Wednesday, January 30, 2019, 14:50 [IST]
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