"Iraqi fighting spirit" in exchange for "Qatari discipline" … Who will win?

ABU DHABI (Reuters) – Iraqi football coach Serzhko Katanic said football in the Arab region needed more regulation and responsibility ahead of Qatar's 16-16 Cup clash. of Asia, at Al Nahyan stadium. Abu Dhabi.
While Katanic demands a "fighting spirit" from his players, he faces a "disciplined and stable" country team.
"Football in this region is different and needs organization and accountability," said Katanic, who oversaw the UAE team between 2009 and 2011. Many want to entertain without liability. To win, you must be aware of your responsibilities every minute of the field. Most players are talented and technically strong, but during the match, some of them forget their tasks. "
But Katanic, who took office four months ago, congratulated the current team: "Iraq is distinctive and there is a great pbadion, people live for football and I want to make them happy."
Katanic had enough days to equip his team after the group stage and called his players: "Fight and do your job."
"I do not want to put pressure on them and remind them of 2007," he said. "When Iraq won a historic title, despite the disastrous circumstances that the country was going through.
Iraq has been at least a quarterfinal since 1996 and fourth in the 2015 Australian final, but is not among the top four on the continent. "Maybe we need more regulation and financial and administrative support to be part of the best Asian teams."
"They played 3 games with 12 players and so they will not change much," said Katanic, who relies on the skill of 18-year-old Mohannad Ali. They changed the style between 3.5-2, 5-3-2, 4-3-3 and many ways, so I have to tell the players to expect them to change the opponent, "he said. he said, adding that the fatigue in the playoffs is not physical, but psychological.
"We met our families in Abu Dhabi and Dubai," he said, "most of the players have made calls to their families, which comfort them psychologically."
But the Iraqi Federation has prevented visits to the hotel, especially in light of the temptation of some players to be professional: "Most of us are going to the Asian Cup for the first time. We may be affected by contracts with Europe and the Gulf, but we have reached maturity and that will not affect us. "
For his part, the Spanish match Felix Sanchez "after testing three different methods in the first round, allows Qatar to achieve the best start in its history with nine full points. Qatar also allowed opponents to pay only three times alone, a record in the first round.
"I have been working in this country for a long time," said Sanchez, who knows most of his players for his experience in the age group. We have a good group of players. In recent friendlies, we played against strong teams like Switzerland and Iceland, we played against Ecuador and we played well. "
As for the match in Iraq, the coach, who is looking to overtake the balance "Annabi" in the quarterfinals of 2000 and 2011: "We consider it the most important of the competition, we will try to change a few things and adapt. Iraq has a lot of talent.
The Qatari team is characterized by the low age of its players: Al-Muez Ali, who scored 7 goals in three matches and getting closer to Iran's Iranian Ali Daei's record (8 in 1996), and Akram Afif, who has 4 badists up to now.
National capabilities that may not be available to the Iraqi mission, particularly in light of the country's long international suspension due to security incidents. "It's been a while since we have not faced Qatar, they have a stable training.Marketing the best players in Qatar At the age of 16 or 17, the player is trained in Belgium and Europe. But we have the talent and we have 38 million Iraqis to rejoice ".
Meanwhile, Bahrain is recovering memories of the 2007 edition in its quest for an unprecedented feat when South Korea, also strong, is now at Rashid Stadium in Dubai.
Twelve years ago, Bahrain beat South Korea 2-1 in their first Asian Cup clash, before going down 2-1 in the 2011 edition, for the first time. third time in the round of 16.
Despite the technical differences between the two South Korea friendly teams, Bahrain, third among the top four teams, can use the history of its previous official meetings with "taekuk fighters" to surprise and exclude the team. one of the best candidates.
The two teams met five times in the qualifying rounds of the Asian Cup, finals and World Cup, winning two victories for a draw.
After a regular appearance in the first round of the 1988 continental championship with two defeats and two draws, Bahrain achieved its best results in 2004, while it was fourth in history, but it did not show up. not yet won twice in the initial time and in overtime.
Between 2007 and 2015, Bahrain was the only winner of all versions, hoping to beat the base against South Korea, which seems not to be content to cross the Rashid stadium to win the title missing from its coffers since 1960 .

Saudi Arabia files … and qualifies for Australia

ABU DHABI: The Saudi team won the 2019 Asian Cup football tournament in the UAE after losing Wednesday against Japan in a modest match at Sharjah Stadium, while the Saudi Arabian team won the 2011 FIFA U-17 Cup in the UAE. Australia qualified for a 4-2 win over Uzbekistan after a draw. Negatively in original and additional time.
In the first match, Takihiro Tomibado scored the only goal of Japan, which will meet Thursday in the quarter-finals, Vietnam, which beat Jordan 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
This is the first time that "green hawks" pbad the group stage and do not reach the final, having won the title in 1984, 1988 and 1996.
In addition, Japan continued its course, without convincing the level of performance, to a fifth title after having exceeded four records in 1992, 2000, 2004 and 2011.
It was the sixth meeting between the two tournament teams, losing Saudi Arabia five times and winning a victory.
Saudi Arabia took possession of the ball, sometimes reaching 73%, but the Japanese defense and the care of its players prevented them from scoring.
For its part, the Japanese team did not give the expected image of its performance in the first round, but reaching the quarter-finals is an achievement for its coach Hajimi Moribado, who replaced Akira Nishino at the end of the day. Russian World Cup. Where he reached the quarterfinals before a defeat with a goal against Belgium (2-3) after advancing with two consecutive innings.