Qatar coach confident of good show against Honduras

Qatar will aim to put their best foot forward when they meet Honduras in their second Group ‘B’ match of Concacaf Gold Cup at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, US, late today (2.45am Friday Doha Time).
This would be a second straight meeting between the two sides eager to catch up on a victory following opening round reversals. While Qatar were edged by Haiti 1-2, Honduras were drubbed by Mexico 0-4.
Qatar and Honduras had squared off in the 2021 tournament during which Qatar emerged with a 2-0 victory on the strength of goals from Homam Ahmed and Abdulaziz Abdullah.
Qatar succumbed to Haiti in their opening match of this edition on a second-half stoppage time goal, so the 2021 semi-finalists will be keen to right the ship and finish out the group with two wins to try to put themselves in a good position to reach the knockout stage.
Yusuf Abdurisag scored the lone Qatar goal against Haiti and will try to achieve the same feat against the Catrachos. Bassam al-Rawi was also a menace going forward and supplied the assist on the Abdurisag score.
“The opportunity to qualify (for the quarter-finals) still exists. There is nothing impossible in football, and we must play and continue to perform strongly,” Qatar’s veteran Portuguese coach had said prior to the team’s departure for Phoenix.
Queiroz, who expressed disappointment with the refereeing during the match against Haiti, reposed confidence in players and hoped the team will come up with an improved performance.
“The team played a great match and imposed their style. We succeeded in scoring an early goal. Despite the loss, I am convinced and proud of the players and their efforts. We are hoping for the best performance in the next match,” he said.
“However, we must learn to focus and play until the last minute in the upcoming matches. We must work and prepare for the next match. We have a young side and I think they are giving their best,” he said.
Qatar had missed the services of star striker Almoez Ali, who was said to be nursing an injury in the opener against Haiti. They would hope for his return against Honduras.
Almoez was the top-scorer with four goals for Qatar in the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup.
For Honduras, the 4-0 loss to Mexico was the fourth time in five Gold Cups that they lost their opening match, and only once in those four occasions did, they manage to reach the knockout stage after dropping their first match, in 2017.
With that in mind, a full three points is imperative for the Central Americans and certainly the players are there to do it.
GK Luis Lopez is a steady hand in net with 40 career saves in 12 Gold Cup matches. MF Deybi Flores is a workhorse in midfield and had four ball recoveries against Mexico, while dangerous FW Alberth Elis was fouled five times against Mexico and will be eager to find his first Gold Cup goal.
In a battle of unbeaten teams in Group B, Mexico will take on Haiti on the same day.
The two teams who got off to winning starts and will meet for a chance to make it two straight.
It will be the first Gold Cup meeting between the two sides since their epic 2019 semi-final when an extra time penalty conversion from Raul Jimenez lifted Mexico to a 1-0 win. Coincidentally, that match also took place at Glendale, Arizona’s State Farm Stadium, the site of Thursday’s affair.
Mexico lead the all-time series 8W-2D-0L while outscoring Les Grenadiers 27-2, so a Haiti win would be historic.
The Caribbean side showed much of the flair that embodied their 2019 semifinal run in their opening match of this tournament on Sunday. Down 1-0 to Qatar, Haiti rallied and picked up a 2-1 win thanks to a goal in second half stoppage time from Frantzdy Pierrot. Coupled with their three comeback wins in the 2019 edition, Haiti have now rallied for four victories in the last three editions of the Gold Cup.
Duckens Nazon tallied the equaliser in what was his team-leading eighth career Gold Cup goal, while the likes of Carlens Arcus and Alexandre Pierre provided ample support in the back, with Arcus making three ball recoveries and GK Pierre registering two saves and two clearances.
The Jaime Lozano era is off to a flying start for Mexico after their 4-0 win against Honduras to open the tournament. Luis Romo had a pair of goals and an assist and was joined by Luis Chavez and Orbelin Pineda on the scoresheet.
Romo’s first goal just 49 seconds into the game was the fastest goal scored by Mexico in a Gold Cup, while Chavez was impeccable in the middle of the park with 50 passes completed and two ball recoveries.
Two teams who play with great panache should make for an entertaining spectacle to decide who will take over first place.