Riyadh: Qatar coach Djamel Belmadi was satisfied with a point against Gulf Cup hosts Saudi Arabia in the opening game of the competition at the King Fahd International Stadium on Thursday.
Ebrahim Majid cancelled out Fahad Al Muwallad’s first half opener before the hour to disappoint the expectant masses of home fans. Hosts Saudi were supposed to have dominated, but in truth it was the Maroons who had the best of the chances.
“It was a tough game and we knew it was going to be from the very beginning,” said Belmadi. “We had a lot of chances in the second half to score, which we didn’t take, but drawing our first game to come away with a point is not that bad.”
Saudi came in at the break with a 1-0 advantage after Al Muwallad shinned Nasser Al Shamrani’s cross into the net on 37 minutes, but Belmadi explained that a tactical change allowed his players to get back into the game.
“I made a few changes to our system in the second half,” he added. “We changed from a 4-3-3 formation to 4-3-2-1 because that was maybe the mistake in the first half. We could see how the game had changed. We had more control of the ball and the game and we created chances. The difference was clear.”
Majid’s headed equaliser from a corner on 53 minutes paved the way to greater dominance for the Qataris, who were unlucky not to find a winner.
“The first half was difficult, especially when you have some young players who lack experience in this kind of tournament,” said the 38-year-old former midfielder, who represented French side Marseille and England’s Southampton as a player.
“I wasn’t satisfied with our first-half performance, but we corrected it in the second half and there was more attacking and desire to cope, you could see that.”
In their next group match, Qatar will play tournament underdogs Yemen on Sunday, a team buoyed by their opening goalless draw with Bahrain.
“For the second game, our target is to pass through to the second round, so, we need to win, and this will be our target,” Belmadi said.
“I think we have the quality to do better and we will. But, like I said earlier, a point is not that bad and we also have to respect Saudi Arabia. They’re playing at home and have big experience in this kind of tournament and a number of quality players.”
Qatar enjoyed the best form of any team coming into this tournament with four consecutive wins, including an impressive 1-0 friendly triumph over Australia last month. Despite missing key players such as Khalfan Ebrahim and Sebastian Soria, they look organised and capable of going all the way.
Saudi, meanwhile, had only won two in their last ten games coming into the event, and beyond that poor form they also look pressurised by the expectations as hosts.
Next up the Green Falcons play Bahrain, who, after a disappointing opening 0-0 draw against Yemen, will be forced into action if they are to get out of the group.
