Qatar SC coach Abdullah Mubarak
DOHA: Coach Abdullah Mubarak - who oversaw the remarkable turnaround of the QNB Stars League (QSL) side Qatar SC outfit this season – has signed a new one-year contract with the club, it was revealed yesterday.
“I have signed a new one-year contract for the next season with Qatar SC. Another QSL club approached me with a tempting offer but I gave my word to Qatar SC so I had to refuse the other offer,” said the veteran tactician, who has coached various clubs in Qatar, both in the first and second divisions.
Mubarak, who was entrusted with a struggling Qatar SC midway into the season, with just four points against their name and with the primary task of avoiding the relegation, was instrumental in the club finishing with 22 points.
“From four points to 22 points, is was not easy. It is one of the most satisfying periods of my career as a coach,” recalled Mubarak while talking to The Peninsula.
Mubarak is not new to saving clubs from relegation. In the 2010-11 season, he bailed out Al Ahli and was rightly awarded as the best coach of the QSL season.
“I coached a lot of teams, I helped Al Ahli to go from second division to first, the now defunct Lekhwiya from second to first. I also coached Al Sailyah and Qatar SC, I am the only coach to help them (Qatar SC) to win against a first division team. My most successful period has been with Qatar SC,” said Mubarak who earned his coaching licence in 1995.
The Qatari tactician, who rendered his services to different clubs for short spells whenever an SOS distress call went to him, said if given a choice he will be keen to ink a long-term coaching contract.
“I prefer a long-term contract, instead of short contract, it has its advantages as a coach and also good for the team. The ideal situation will be a long-term association with one particular club,” he said.
Mubarak said he has developed his own coaching philosophy which has been influenced by his experiences during his playing and his coaching tenures with different clubs and also the time he has spent with European giants to gain more coaching experience.
“Practically speaking, I have my own coaching philosophy. I went to Europe to gain coaching experience with clubs such as Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Ajax, PSV Eindhoven and also in Japan. I gained a lot of experiences which reflect in the way I train and my style of play. Training different clubs also helped me to tweak my style from time to time to suit the needs.
“The important thing is to change your style and modify according to the resources which are available with you and adopt accordingly,” he added.
Muabarak opined that Video Analysis Review (VAR) is taking the excitement away from the game.
“My opinion differs from the opinion of the experts who have developed the system. The fun of the game stops because the team will have to stop for two to three minutes and they will lose focus, the excitement stops.
“We all make mistakes. Referee is human, beauty of football is people making mistakes on the playing field, mistakes by the referee, coach, player, the whole system add to the excitement, but stopping the game, stopping the play to check the video footage will affect the game, morale of the player, and focus,” said Mubarak in response to a question.
