Qatari players set for the most important match of their lives — AFC Asian Cup final

After several days of build-up, the day is finally here.

Barring the opening game of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the AFC Asian Cup final match against Japan is arguably the most crucial game Qatari players are likely to play.

In just under seven hours, Qatar, so far unbeaten in the tournament, will take on four-time champion Japan in the final and it will be a game to behold.

Given the current political circumstances, not many people believed that Qatar would reach the final stage. But six games and 16 goals later, nobody is discounting Qatar anymore.

The Samurai Blue may have the Asian Cup pedigree, but they are still a work in progress and stuttered through their early matches before exploding into life with a ruthless 3-0 humbling of heavyweights Iran in the semifinals.

Qatar showed massive character in the face of a hostile crowd to run out 4-0 winners and reach a continental title-decider for the first time.

Spanish coach Felix Sanchez has built his team into a comprehensive unit and the tournament’s leading scorer Almoez Ali is sure to give Qatar an edge.

“This is the most important game in Qatar’s football history” the Spaniard was quoted as saying by Gulf Times.

“We’re now obviously at the stage of the tournament where the team is in a confident mood and looking forward to starting the game. If we win the trophy, it’ll be Qatar’s most significant achievement in terms of football.

“Hopefully, we can have one more good performance. One of the key things for us is that there’s a great team spirit, everyone is working together to achieve the same result,” he said.

The excitement is undoubtedly going to be palpable at home. While Qatari fans have been barred from travelling to the UAE due to the blockade, they flocked to several public screenings in the country.

This scenario is sure to be repeated today, with several places already has announced plans to show the match live on giant screens.

There will be large screens at Aspire Park, Souq Waqif, Airport Park, Qatar Foundation, Katara, The Pearl-Qatar, Museum of Islamic Art Park, Doha Festival City, Mall of Qatar and Lagoona Mall.

Sanchez said the players are entirely focused on the job.

“The players are determined to get the victory we want by putting in one more huge effort against Japan so that we can make the Qatari people happy once again and make history.”

“When we arrived to play in the AFC Asian Cup, our target was to test ourselves against everyone, to be able to compete against all the teams here and to be able to hold our own against the very best in Asia,” declared the Barcelona native.

Japan striker Yuya Osako, who scored two goals in an outstanding performance against Iran, will undoubtedly test the Qatar defensive line at Zayed Sports City but it will be bolstered by the return from suspension of Bassam Al Rawi.