Gazan fans optimistic as Palestine wins historic first point
Saeb Jendia knows the Palestinian football team’s chances for the 2019 Asian Cup better than most.
Mr Jendia, 44, is a former player and coach for the team, and if he had been born in another country he says he would have been in the stands of Sharjah Stadium on Sunday to cheer on his beloved team against Syria in their first game of the tournament.
The game was earlier the hottest ticket in the first round of the tournament and large expatriate communities of Syrians and Palestinians were expected to fill Sharjah’s stands to watch what ended in a scoreless draw.
But as Alfeda’I, as the Palestinian team is known to its fans, warmed up before the game on Sunday evening, Mr Jendia was more than 2,100 kilometres away watching the action on a big screen in the heart of Gaza City.
The political and economic conditions in the besieged enclave make it all but impossible for any of Gaza’s 1.8 million people to travel abroad, even with their national team hoping to make history.
“I have been waiting for Alfeda’I to play their first game in this cup for a long time,” Mr Jendia said.
As it turned out, many of the seats in Sharjah were empty as the teams ran on to the pitch, but in the indoor sports arena in Gaza that had been turned into an impromptu fan headquarters, the atmosphere was electric.
Atef Abu Hassera, 33, waved a flag high as his five-year-old son cheered.
“We came here to raise the Palestinian flag and cheer the Palestinian team in this cup. It’s very important to us,” Mr Abu Hassera said.
As the referee blew the starting whistle, hundreds of Palestinian fans in the Gazan hall sang their team chants to the beat of a bass drum.
This tournament is just the second in which Palestine have been among the 24 qualifying teams, but going into the match Syria were strongly favoured to win.
Palestine first qualified for the Asian Cup in 2015 but went home pointless after scoring one goal and conceding 11.
This year, Group B will be another tough pool, Mr Jendia predicted. “But to win is not impossible.”
Alfeda’I will next face Australia and then Jordan, who last time sent them packing in a crushing 5-1 defeat.
But for the past month, the team have been boosted by high-profile expatriate players, including Chileans Alexis Norambuena, Yashir Pinto and Jonathan Cantillana.
“The players have gained enough experience to qualify them to play in such a tournament,” Mr Jendia said.
Syria maintained possession for long periods and when Palestine’s Mohammed Saleh was handed a red card, Alfeda’I were a man short and feeling the pressure.
But Palestine remained steadfast and both teams took home a point each – Palestine’s first in the tournament – which left the fans in the Gazan sports arena cheering long after the final whistle.
Mr Jendia assessed the team’s performance as satisfactory.