|
|
|
|
| 2010 FIFA World Cup |
|
|
|
| Qatar powerplay delights Fossati |
 |
| Qatar coach Jorge Fossati. |
DOHA: Qatar coach Jorge Fossati was delighted to see his plans come to fruition on Saturday as the Gulf side stunned Uzbekistan 3-0 in their opening Group One match at Al Sadd Stadium.
The Qataris opened the scoring after 37 minutes with a Majdi Siddiq free-kick and extended their advantage in the second half with substitute Magid Mohamed making it 2-0 in the 72nd minute before Talal Al Bloushi added a third with two minutes remaining.
"We are happy with this win especially as we have faced a strong team who prepared well for the game. We had a lot of chances to score in the game and after taking the lead in the first half we sealed the game with two goals in the second half," Fossati said.
"Uzbekistan played with an effective method throughout the game but we didn't give them spaces to create chances. I'm satisfied with the performance in general although there were some mistakes in our play.
"We knew that Uzbekistan would be looking to close their area and try to play with quick counter attacks. We created a lot of chances although we made some mistakes in converting those chances to goals."
Fossati can now look forward to another crucial home encounter against Bahrain on Wednesday.
"We don't have enough time before the next match against Bahrain but we must prepare well for this important match.
“We respect all our opponents and Bahrain's defeat against Japan doesn't mean that we should underestimate them."
“We have finished the first step and completed 16% of our campaign but we still have 84% to go. Our target is still far away and we must work very hard to reach it."
Uzbekistan coach Rauf Inileev was disappointed by the result and pointed the finger of blame at Malaysian referee Subkhiddin Salleh.
"Unfortunately the referee didn't have a good game and we were denied a clear penalty in the second half when Qatar were leading with one goal and a penalty at that time could have changed the game," the Uzbek coach said.
"Qatar's first goal came from a free-kick which shouldn't have been given but the referee awarded it and they scored their opening goal.
"But speaking about the referee's mistakes doesn't deny the fact that Qatar played a good game especially when they scored the second and third goals in the second half."
|
|
|
|
|
|
