Qatar coach Felix Sanchez speaking at a press conference in Doha yesterday.
Asian champions Qatar are keen to leave a good impression when they make their Copa America debut in Brazil next month, coach Felix Sanchez said yesterday.
Qatar will play against former World Cup champions Argentina, Colombia and Paraguay in Group B at the South American football blockbuster to be held from June 14-July 7.
Japan and Qatar are the two guest teams in the 12-team tournament that also features Brazil, Peru, Uruguay, Bolivia, Venezuela, Chile and Ecuador.
Earlier this year, Sanchez guided Qatar to seven straight wins on their way to a historic Asian Cup title win in the UAE where ‘Al Annabi’ beat three-time champions Japan in the final.
“We are looking forward to the event. Our target is to play to our best. It will be a great experience and a great challenge,” Sanchez said yesterday.
“After the tournament we will be a better team. Our players are very competitive. We saw that at the Asian Cup. They are confident. We are committed to giving our best. Let’s see what stage we are at since it has been a long season. We have great motivation to play a great tournament,” the Spaniard, who will coach Qatar until 2022, said.
“There are strong sides like Argentina and Paraguay. They are World Cup winning sides in that competition. Most of the sides are top 50. It will be hard but that’s what we want to do - we want to play against them and learn. We need to arrive and compete well. It will be physically tough. We have to forget the Asian Cup triumph. It is not easy at this level. For sure it is huge a challenge,” Sanchez said.
“I am extremely happy with the Qatar’s performances before the Copa. We have a number of stars, not one, who could do well in Brazil also. I hope those players showcase themselves well. I know they would be looked at top teams, by big clubs. Most of the players are young and they want to get experience,” he said.
The Qatari coach said his team can’t wait to land in Brazil.
“We are willing to learn. It has been a long season for the players. We played the Asian Cup followed by the AFC Champions League apart from the regular football that started in August last year. But we know we have to arrive in good condition at Copa America. The players have the motivation to do well,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez said a light training camp has kicked off his team’s preparation for the event in Brazil.
“After the Asian Cup, last week we have started preparing with available bunch of players. Some (club) players are still playing the Amir Cup matches and the AFC Champions League games. The ones not playing in these events have joined us at the camp. The rest will join us soon,” Sanchez said.
“It will be a short training camp before we will travel to US for some days and then to Brazil. We play Brazil on the fifth. That will be our first game on the Brazil trip. Then on 9th, we will play a club game against a Brazil side. It will be a time for us to test players. We are happy to play this fixture. On the 16th of June, we will start our Copa campaign,” he added.
“We are happy what we did in the Asian Cup. We are proud to see Qatar fans were so happy. There was a big support which helps us to be better. But we are appearing in Copa America for the first time. We are not used to playing against South American sides,” he added.
When asked about the possible players line-up, Sanchez said: “We have to submit a list of 40 players. At the end of the month, we have to submit 23 players. There are a few players who are injured. We have to wait on their fitness updates. Hassan got injured. We have to wait for the report on his scans. Karim Boudiaf is also injured. When it is a long season, it is normal to see players get injured.”
