Home comforts
The 2022 World Cup hosts’ biggest footballing talents continue to stay at home
It was quite a season for Iranian strikers in Europe. Zenit’s Sardar Azmoun finished joint-top scorer in the Russian Premier League; Mehdi Taremi did the same in Portugal and has promptly been snapped up by Porto; while only three players scored more than Kaveh Rezaei in Belgium. For a national team whose recent relative success was built on a strong defence, these are encouraging signs.
If only Arabian nations in West Asia could say the same. The biggest and best talents in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates tend to stay at home, where they are lauded and paid very well. Even those that still wished to leave often had dreams dashed by all-powerful owners reluctant to lose their biggest stars.
Qatar were supposed to be different. A few years ago it seemed that the 2022 World Cup hosts knew that their best chance of success in their first appearance on the global stage was to give the national team as much international exposure as possible. As well as Copa America invitations, there were efforts to send players to Europe. In 2019, it all seemed to be coming together. It started with a spectacular Asian Cup triumph and ended with Akram Afif, who managed ten assists in that tournament win, being named Asian Player of the Year. The 23-year-old winger spent 2015-18 playing for Eupen in Belgium and then Sporting Gijon in Spain.
Abdelkarim Hassan, 2018 Asian Player of the Year, also spent time in Belgium, and it was assumed that the full-back would go on to play on bigger stages.
The duo were expected to return to Europe soon after the Asian Cup finished, but that has not been the case. In fact, in July both Afif and Hassan signed new long-term deals with Qatari powerhouse Al Sadd.
“I am delighted with the renewal of the contract, and I will strive to give everything I have to meet the aspirations of the administration, the coaching staff and the fans,” Afif said. “I hope to give my best in the upcoming challenges, at home and in Asia, and compete for all titles.”
At least, Hassan sounded like he was still interested in expanding his horizons. “I also thank the Al Sadd management for leaving the doors of European professionalism open to me during the next period, upon the arrival of an offer that suits my potential and ambition.”
All is not quite lost, as the pair will be working with one of the best European players in the modern era in Doha. In July, Xavi decided not to go to Barcelona and extended his contract as Al Sadd head coach for another year. The former midfield maestro has high hopes for Akram.
“With this kind of talent, he has many ambitions,” Xavi said. “He’s still young and I think he can do many things in his career.”
And then there is Almoez Ali. The Sudanese-born striker who had early spells in Austria and Spain, grabbed nine goals in the 2019 Asian Cup triumph. That tournament record led to rumours of Juventus and Tottenham Hotspur interest but instead, the 24-year-old has been playing in Qatar for the past four years with Al Duhail. At the moment, Ali, who scored against Paraguay to help Qatar pick up their only point at the 2019 Copa America, doesn’t look like moving, which is a surprise as he looked to be a genuine star in the making and well capable of playing at a higher level.
It remains to be seen if playing in the Qatar Stars League has Ali where he wants to be when the 2022 World Cup comes around – and the same can be said for all of The Maroons. At the moment, the entire squad is based at home. The league is improving but a bit more European experience would not go amiss.
Xavi believes that Qatar will be OK. “I think they are working really well,” the Spaniard said. “They have a very good team, also a very good coach and they are very well organised on the pitch. They have a very, very good generation of young players, not only Akram – he’s one of the best – but also Almoez Ali and Boualem Khoukhi.”
Time will tell if Xavi is right and whether Qatar will regret not having more players in the big leagues two years from now.
The duo [Afif and Hassan] were expected to return to Europe soon after the Asian Cup finished, but that has not been the case