Qatar coach Felix Sanchez (right) and his assistants are all wrapped up in team trainers and jackets in Vienna, Austria, yesterday.
VIENNA, Austria: Asian champions Qatar have hit the ground running in 'chilly' Vienna where they will take on Costa Rica in an international friendly tomorrow.
Coached by Felix Sanchez, Qatar trained a day after landing in Vienna where the squad trained twice on Tuesday and once yesterday despite 'very cold conditions'.
Tomorrow's match will be played at at BSFZ Arena Admiral Stadium with kick-off set for 6:00pm Austria time. Qatar will play South Korea on November 17.
Qatar midfielder Ahmed Moein said the Qatar squad aims to deliver a strong performance against Costa Rica.
Qatar's Akram Afif (left) and team mate Musaab Khidir are seen during a training session in Vienna yesterday.
"This is a very important preparatory camp for us," Moein said. "Every player is striving to provide their best technical level in these two matches and to underscore the readiness for the next stage of our overall preparation," he added.
"The players are ready to play matches to get a positive result," he said.
"I feel we are required to be at our best for these two important matches. Playing such matches will be a huge benefit to us as we prepare for events like 2021 Copa America and Gold Cup," he added. "We are ready to play the first match (against Costa Rica). We hope to present a good level that shows us as champions of Asia and everyone is excited about such important matches," he said.
Qatar's Ahmed Moein chases a ball during the same training session ahead of Qatar's friendly against Costa Rica tomorrow. Qatar will play South Korea on November 17.
Qatar player Moaied Hassan said: "The atmosphere within the squad is great. Everyone seems to be enthusiastic. We are facing a strong side in Costa Rica. Playing with different sides will be of great help to us as we build momentum going into our events next year."
The training grounds on which Qatar national team is training are located close to the Hilton Vienna hotel where the squad is camped, he team's media chief Ali Salat said.
"The weather is cold but the players are adjusting well," Salat said. "We had the COVID-19 swab tests done today. It is mandatory that we get it done 48 hours prior to our match," he added. "There are number of new players featuring on this trip. We are building momentum ahead of Copa America and the Gold Cup debut we will make next year," he said.
"Last month we played against Ghana and now we are set for Costa Rica and South Korea (on November 17). These are three different schools of football for us. We look forward to our matches in Austria," Salat said.
Sanchez's assistants have been busy watching videos of Costa Rica and South Korea matches played in recent times. The technical staff have watched Costa Rica playing against Mexico, Panama and the United States.
Similarly they also followed Korea's matches against Brazilian, Lebanon, North Korea, Sri Lanka and Turkmenistan. "South Korea is considered one of the best Asian teams and facing them is a good preparation for Annabi in the next stage," Salat said.
