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IKOLI VICTOR
DOHA
Qatar coach Albert Fernandez has urged his players to be calm and play without pressure ahead of their second group match against Nepal in their AFC U23 Qualifier at the Aspire Pitch 5 on Sunday.
Qatar had defeated Afghanistan 2-0 in a nervous first-half performance, while Nepal, against the odds, held their own to restrict Oman to just a goal in their loss.
The match is important for both the teams as victory for Qatar depending on the scoreline may put them in the driver’s seat for automatic qualification. While Nepal still stand a chance of qualifying, if they get an unexpected win against hosts Qatar.
Fernandez said after the match on Friday that his players achieved the most important result which is a win, knowing how difficult opening matches are. The Spanish coach promised that, “We would have an improved performance in the next game. Our ambition is to play better against Nepal and overcome the pressure barrier and be in a good state of mind.
“After each game we study the negatives and the positives and we are keen to correct the mistakes. There were some errors that haven’t happened to us before and we are not used to it because of pressure.”
Fernandez said having watched the first half of the match between Oman and Nepal, “I would analyse and look on their strengths and weaknesses so we can capitalise on to collect full points.”
He added that the slim 1-0 defeat of Nepal by Oman is evident of the equality between the teams and that they are no pushovers.
Fernandez is hopeful his striker Abdullah Alahrak who suffered a knock in the game is fit and ready for the match depends if he’s cleared by the medical staff.
Qatar will rely on the defensive duo of Tarek Salman and Bassam al Rawi, while expecting the attacking trio of Abdelrahman Moustafa, Hassan Ahmad Alahrak to find the back of the net.
Oman will look to continue their winning form in Sunday’s encounter with Afghanistan, while the latter have no room for error in their clash against attacking-minded Oman.
The Omanis will hope strikers Muhsen Saleh and Arshad Said find their rhythm after their profligacy in front of goal against Nepal.
Meanwhile, coach Mohammad Mujtaba of Afghanistan is confident his players will get the required result against Oman and possibly finish second in the group with the hope of finishing among the best four teams to join the eleven group winners.
“Hopefully in the next two games we will do better and prepare ourselves well to qualify for the next round as the second team.”
“Oman are tough but I believe my players can match them and get the desired result. We still have a chance of qualifying and we’ll play with that confidence,” Mujtaba added.
DOHA
Qatar coach Albert Fernandez has urged his players to be calm and play without pressure ahead of their second group match against Nepal in their AFC U23 Qualifier at the Aspire Pitch 5 on Sunday.
Qatar had defeated Afghanistan 2-0 in a nervous first-half performance, while Nepal, against the odds, held their own to restrict Oman to just a goal in their loss.
The match is important for both the teams as victory for Qatar depending on the scoreline may put them in the driver’s seat for automatic qualification. While Nepal still stand a chance of qualifying, if they get an unexpected win against hosts Qatar.
Fernandez said after the match on Friday that his players achieved the most important result which is a win, knowing how difficult opening matches are. The Spanish coach promised that, “We would have an improved performance in the next game. Our ambition is to play better against Nepal and overcome the pressure barrier and be in a good state of mind.
“After each game we study the negatives and the positives and we are keen to correct the mistakes. There were some errors that haven’t happened to us before and we are not used to it because of pressure.”
Fernandez said having watched the first half of the match between Oman and Nepal, “I would analyse and look on their strengths and weaknesses so we can capitalise on to collect full points.”
He added that the slim 1-0 defeat of Nepal by Oman is evident of the equality between the teams and that they are no pushovers.
Fernandez is hopeful his striker Abdullah Alahrak who suffered a knock in the game is fit and ready for the match depends if he’s cleared by the medical staff.
Qatar will rely on the defensive duo of Tarek Salman and Bassam al Rawi, while expecting the attacking trio of Abdelrahman Moustafa, Hassan Ahmad Alahrak to find the back of the net.
Oman will look to continue their winning form in Sunday’s encounter with Afghanistan, while the latter have no room for error in their clash against attacking-minded Oman.
The Omanis will hope strikers Muhsen Saleh and Arshad Said find their rhythm after their profligacy in front of goal against Nepal.
Meanwhile, coach Mohammad Mujtaba of Afghanistan is confident his players will get the required result against Oman and possibly finish second in the group with the hope of finishing among the best four teams to join the eleven group winners.
“Hopefully in the next two games we will do better and prepare ourselves well to qualify for the next round as the second team.”
“Oman are tough but I believe my players can match them and get the desired result. We still have a chance of qualifying and we’ll play with that confidence,” Mujtaba added.
