QATAR 2022
Félix Sánchez: "I’m sure Qatar will put on an exceptional World Cup"
The Spanish coach of the Qatar national side, who won the 2019 Asian Cup, is expecting big things from his team and a tournament to remember in 2022.
Félix Sánchez, the Spanish coach of the Qatar national side, is one of the most highly regarded managers working in the AFC at the moment having guided The Maroons to the 2019 Asian Cup title earlier this year. That was enough for the Qatar Football Association to renew the former Barcelona youth coach’s contract until the 2022 World Cup, a tournament that Sánchez is convinced will be a huge success.
From 26 November, Sánchez will lead host nation Qatar at the 24th edition of the Gulf Cup where he will aim to erase the memory of the previous tournament in Kuwait in 2017 where his side failed to get out of the group stage. Next up for the Spaniard is attempting to take Qatar to the Olympic Games in Tokyo next year via the 2020 AFC under-23 Championship, with the top three sides in the tournament to be staged in Thailand in January obtaining their ticket for Japan.
Sánchez: "The fans hope that we can win the Gulf Cup"
Speaking on television programme The Manager, Sánchez said that plenty had been gained from the early exit in the 2017 Gulf Cup as he looks ahead to the biggest challenge of them all, putting on a show for the host nation at the 2022 World Cup. “It’s true that Qatar went out of the Championship in the first round, but it’s an experience we have learned from. This time the circumstances are different, in two years things have changed. The fans hope that we can win the [Gulf] cup. All of the competing nations are coming here to win, a challenge that we accept.”
Speaking about his time in Qatar and the World Cup, Sánchez said: “I came to Doha in 2006 where I worked with a group of youngsters at the Aspire Academy. We posted good results and we went on to win the Asian Cup. It was my dream come true. As for the World Cup, we are working on a predetermined programme. In terms of the organization, I’m sure Qatar will put on an exceptional tournament.”