In the 2023 Asian Cup final, the Qatar team excellently won 3-1 against Jordan to win the championship. Thus, the representative of West Asia becomes the 5th team in history to successfully defend the Asian Cup championship after South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Japan.
Speaking after the match, Coach Marquez Lopez congratulated his students. However, he also admitted that the home team’s 2023 Asian Cup championship was not spectacular.
The Spanish coach said: “Although there is not much time to prepare for the 2023 Asian Cup, The Qatari players complied well and understood the strategy I proposed. The students played very well but I think they can still be better.
To win the championship, the students played very well. My team worked tirelessly and showed solidarity throughout the tournament with a high density of competition. I was very happy when the team reached the top position.
The team won Asian Cup 2023 championship after an extremely difficult match. Maybe Qatar won the championship not beautifully, but the important thing is to win. I congratulate Akram Afif. He deserves to win the individual award in this year’s tournament.”
The Qatar team dominated the individual awards at the 2023 Asian Cup. Midfielder Akram Afif won the double title of Top Scorer (8 goals) and Best Player. Goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham received the Best Goalkeeper award. Meanwhile, captain Hassan Al Haidos received the Fair-play award.
On the other side of the front line, Jordan coach Hussein Ammouta said: “We were not focused in the first half and made mistakes. We had a chance to score more goals but couldn’t take advantage of them. Not to mention the two penalties in the second half also took place at a sensitive time.
But I still want to congratulate the players They played extremely confidently in this tournament. In front of them is a brilliant horizon. I think Jordan is fully capable of winning the Asian Cup in the future.”
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