DOHA (Qatar): Qatar national coach Felix Sanchez said he was impressed with Qatar’s impressive fighting spirit in the 2022 World Cup qualifier in Debrecen (Hungary).
The 2022 World Cup hosts remained unbeaten in three matches, winning two and drew one.
Al Annabi had beaten Azerbaijan and Luxembourg at the Nagyerdei Stadion.
The Spaniard was elated by the brilliant efforts of Al Annabi players against the highly competitive European sides.
“We faced a very strong Irish team, especially in terms of physical aspects. We found ourselves behind after three minutes. But it did not affect the determination of the our players who were on time as usual and presented a good level of performance and returned to the match. I can say we played to win, especially in the second half where we ventured and put pressure on the opponents who had several players who are playing in the English Premier League,” said Sanchez.
Qatar, who have qualified automatically for the World Cup as the host nation, are included as a guest team in the European Qualifiers as they look to gain match practice against top teams.
“They have proven that they have a distinct football mentality and culture. Coming back after a goal behind against teams of this calibre is not an easy task. But our players did it. This is precisely what pleased us,” said the former Aspire Academy coach, who took charge of the Al Annabi outfit in 2017.
