Qatar will be great World Cup host, says AFC president

* ‘At Arab Cup, the world has witnessed the warmth of Qatar’s hospitality and the impeccable organisational expertise’Asian football president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim al-Khalifah believes Qatar’s staging of the Arab Cup over the past two weeks has proved its capacity to stage “the greatest-ever FIFA World Cup” later next year.

Asian Football Confederation president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim al-Khalifah (right) presents the golden glove award to Algeria’s goalkeeper Rais M’Bolhi after the FIFA Arab Cup final at Al Bayt Stadium on Saturday. AFP

African champions Algeria beat Tunisia in the final in Doha on Saturday at Al Bayt Stadium, which will host the opening match of the World Cup next November. Qatar’s own national team finished third after beating Egypt on penalties.The Arab Cup was revived, after the scrapping of the Confederations Cup, as a final World Cup test event and used six of the stadia involved. This was the first pan-Arab tournament to be held under the FIFA umbrella and took place exactly a year before Qatar will host the region’s first FIFA World Cup.The tournament featured 32 matches over 19 days and 83 goals, at an average of 2.59 per game. It also provided Qatar with a vital opportunity to fine-tune preparations for the FIFA World Cup. Qatar is set to host the most compact version of the tournament in modern history, with all the stadiums in close proximity of central Doha and fans having the chance to attend more than one match a day during the early stages of the competition.Sheikh Salman, who attended the final at Al Bayt on Saturday, said Qatar is more than ready to stage the greatest-ever FIFA World Cup in 2022. “Over the last 19 days, the world has witnessed the warmth of Qatar’s hospitality and the impeccable organisational expertise and efficiency led by Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Legacy & Delivery executed to perfection. More importantly, the Arab Cup confirmed what we in Asia have known all along, that Qatar is more than ready to stage the greatest-ever World Cup in the tournament’s proud history,” he said.“On behalf of the Asian football family, I would like to congratulate the Qatar Football Association, the Qatar Supreme Committee for Legacy & Delivery and the local authorities for their outstanding efforts, particularly under these challenging circumstances, and I must reiterate the AFC’s support towards our collective ambitions to showcase the true spirit of our Asian and Arab hospitality. We must also congratulate our Asian teams for their valiant and brave displays throughout the tournament. Qatar were extremely unfortunate to narrowly miss the final, but credit must go to all our 10 Asian participating teams and everyone working tirelessly behind the scenes for showcasing great resolve and for doing the continent proud,” the AFC president added.Players, officials impressed by Qatar’s organisationMeanwhile, Tunisian striker Seifeddine Jaziri said the that the Arab Cup was organised in a impeccable manner. Jaziri, who as the tournament top scorer with four goals, said his team had lived in a World Cup kind of atmosphere throughout tournament.“The atmosphere was special during the tournament and the level we presented, we hope it will motivate us to do well in future and we qualify for the World Cup finals in Qatar 2022,” Jaziri said.More than 600,000 tickets were sold for the 16-team Arab Cup, including a Qatari-record 63,439 crowd when the hosts played fierce rivals the United Arab Emirates in the quarter-finals.Coaches were impressed by the facilities, with Algeria’s Majid Bougherra, a World Cup veteran, saying “everything is perfect”. “The stadiums are great, the pitches are great. Perhaps one small downside, but it won’t be the case at the World Cup, is that we were in the same hotel as everyone else,” he said.“We congratulate (Qatar) on this beautiful Arab Cup and I think the World Cup will be exceptional,” Bougherra added.Egypt coach Carlos Queiroz, the former Iran, Portugal and Real Madrid boss, said the Qatar World Cup has “all the ingredients to succeed”.Meanwhile, president of the Algerian Football Federation Charaf-Eddine Amara said Qatar proved successful hosting in FIFA Arab Cup. He was impressed by good organisation and the great capabilities that were put in place. His sentiments were echoed by former Kuwaiti international Bashar Abdullah. “I have previously participated in three editions of the Arab Cup, where there was lack of interest. But this edition was different as there was immense spotlight on the event, which mainly because of Qatar’s organisational capabilities and facilities,” Abdullah said.