Ikoli Victor
Doha
Fans of World Cup 2022 host Al Annabi were able to see the team for the final time before their opening game against Ecuador on Sunday, thanks to an opening training session involving their favourite players at the Al Sadd Stadium.
Over 5000 supporters packed the Al Sadd stands to continue cheering on Felix Sanchez's men, who will guide Qatar to the first World Cup in the Middle East and Arab world.
For four months, the Asian champions have been in training camps in Spain and Austria, where they have played hybrid friendlies against Canada, Chile, and Jamaica, as well as Ghana's local national team.
Abdelkarim Hassan was the first man on the field, and the fans greeted him warmly before the rest of the team came out after him.
They began with a brief team meeting before the players, one by one, granted interviews to a throng of media representatives, including coach Felix Sanchez.
The players engaged in training drills as different groups of players were assigned different roles. The goalkeepers were separated from the rest of the group to work on specific aspects of their game, while the rest of the group ran sprints, dribbled, and passed. The players finished the session with some shots on goal.
There was still time for some young pitch invaders to come on the pitch and celebrate with their heroes.
Members of the Shaffalah Center were also present, walking onto the field to greet the players as they emerged from the dressing room to the cheers and admiration of the raucous fans waving the matron and white Qatar flag. Members of the national team took photos with members of the charity organization one after the other.