Host status secured Qatar’s route to the FIFA 2022 World Cup, as they break new ground in the competition with their first appearance on the main stage.
Despite the controversy over FIFA’s decision to select Qatar as the competition hosts, the Middle East now awaits its first World Cup, with Qatar under pressure to perform.
A lack of World Cup pedigree is a major factor against Felix Sanchez’s side, but hosts have risen to the challenge before in unlikely circumstances.
Group A pits them against Ecuador, Senegal and the Netherlands, and Sanchez will surely not be dismissing the chance of an upset.
MORE: All you need to know about the World Cup 2022 hosts Qatar
Final Qatar World Cup squad 2022
Sanchez had until Friday, October 21 to submit an official preliminary list of 35-55 players to FIFA, and from there he selected his final 26-man roster announced on Nov. 11, a few days ahead of the FIFA deadline.
The final squad is entirely made up of players from the domestic Qatar Stars League and with exactly half of the players hailing from defending champions Al Sadd.
Qatar open the 2022 World Cup against Ecuador on Sunday, November 20 in the inaugural match.
| Position | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Saad Al-Sheeb | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 32 | 80 |
| Goalkeeper | Meshaal Barsham | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 24 | 15 |
| Goalkeeper | Yousuf Hassan | Al-Gharafa (QAT) | 26 | 9 |
| Defender | Pedro Miguel | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 32 | 78 |
| Defender | Musaab Khidir | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 29 | 29 |
| Defender | Tarek Salman | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 24 | 54 |
| Defender | Bassam Al Rawi | Al-Duhail (QAT) | 24 | 51 |
| Defender | Boualem Khoukhi | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 32 | 99 |
| Defender | Abdelkarim Hassan | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 29 | 120 |
| Defender | Ismaeel Mohammad | Al-Duhail (QAT) | 32 | 66 |
| Defender | Homam Ahmed Al Amin | Al-Gharafa (QAT) | 23 | 27 |
| Defender | Jassim Jabir | Al-Arabi (QAT) | 20 | 0 |
| Midfielder | Ali Asad | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 29 | 56 |
| Midfielder | Assim Madibo | Al-Duhail (QAT) | 26 | 43 |
| Midfielder | Mohammed Waad | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 23 | 20 |
| Midfielder | Salem Al-Hajri | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 26 | 23 |
| Midfielder | Mustafa Meshaal | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 21 | 1 |
| Midfielder | Karim Boudiaf | Al-Duhail (QAT) | 32 | 108 |
| Midfielder | Abdulaziz Hatim | Al-Rayyan (QAT) | 32 | 96 |
| Forward | Naif Al-Hadhrami | Al-Rayyan (QAT) | 21 | 1 |
| Forward | Ahmed Alaaeldin | Al-Gharafa (QAT) | 29 | 45 |
| Forward | Hassan Al-Haydos | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 31 | 160 |
| Forward | Akram Afif | Al-Sadd (QAT) | 25 | 83 |
| Forward | Almoez Ali | Al-Duhail (QAT) | 26 | 82 |
| Forward | Mohammed Muntari | Al-Duhail (QAT) | 28 | 41 |
| Forward | Khalid Muneer | Al-Wakrah (QAT) | 24 | 3 |
WORLD CUP 2022 SELECTED SQUADS:
Australia | Argentina | Belgium | Brazil | Cameroon
Canada | Costa Rica | Croatia | Denmark | England
France | Germany | Ghana | Iran | Japan | Mexico
Netherlands | Poland | Portugal | Qatar | Senegal
Serbia | Spain | Switzerland | Uruguay | USA | Wales
The announcement we were waiting for ⏳😍
Introducing.. Felix Sanchez’s Qatar national team squad for the 2022 World Cup 🏆
These are our heroes. And now, it’s our TIME 💪🇶🇦#AllForAlAnnabi#ForTheLoveOfQatar pic.twitter.com/0ahwdE6L9p
— Qatar Football Association (@QFA_EN) November 11, 2022
Qatar best player, strengths & weaknesses
After receiving an automatic spot at the World Cup, Qatar were placed in UEFA qualifying Group A (as a non-competitor) to enable Sanchez’s side to get a taste of top-level action before the tournament.
Two wins from 10 games showed their struggles against European sides, but they managed to reach the semifinals of North America’s 2021 Gold Cup and the Arab Cup.
Stars
Sanchez will continue to rely on a solely home-based Qatari squad for the World Cup, with several of his players already reaching 100 or more international caps.
The unquestioned star is the electric Akram Afif at forward. Veteran Hassan Al Haydos is the team’s skillful playmaker who will be the key link as the team aims to catch opponents by surprise on the counter.
Strengths
The counterattack is Qatar’s main weapon and Akram Afif is the critical component of that transition game. His speed and one-vs-one skills can be enough to cause chaos in the opponent’s half and fellow forward Almoez Ali will be the beneficiary of any service if Afif can’t do it all himself.
Weaknesses
Outside of the international competition that Qatar has sought through friendlies and other tournaments, their players are untested outside of their own national league and that could be exposed from the start.
Qatar World Cup group
Anything other than a group-stage exit would represent a major success for Qatar on their World Cup debut. However, the challenge of defending African champions Senegal, and a resurgent Netherlands, is likely to be too much for them. There is, though, a possibility of a positive opening against Ecuador.
Qatar Group A fixtures and match schedule
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Sun, Nov. 20 | Qatar vs. Ecuador | 11 a.m. | Al Bayt Stadium |
| Fri, Nov. 25 | Qatar vs. Senegal | 8 a.m. | Al Thumama Stadium |
| Tues, Nov. 29 | Netherlands vs. Qatar | 10 a.m. | Al Bayt Stadium |
Can Qatar replace players on World Cup roster?
Once the final 26-man roster is official, participating teams at the World Cup can only make changes before the first game of the tournament, and only in the case of extraordinary circumstances.
According to the official tournament rules, “a player listed on the final list may only be replaced in the event of serious injury or illness up until 24 hours before the start of his team’s first match.”
The team in question would need to submit a medical report to FIFA and if the world governing body determines “the injury or illness is sufficiently serious to prevent the player from taking part in the FIFA World Cup” then the replacement will be allowed.
The replacement player must come from the preliminary list of players submitted to FIFA in October.
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