Qatar World Cup draw 2022: Group A results with Senegal, Netherlands, matches, fixtures, star players, roster and coach

Jeorge Bird

Qatar World Cup draw 2022: Group A results with Senegal, Netherlands, matches, fixtures, star players, roster and coach image

World Cup hosts Qatar will be participating in the finals of the tournament for the first time in their history.

It will be a hugely significant occasion for Felix Sanchez's team, as they look to show that they can compete with the strongest nations in the world.

There will be a lot of focus on Qatar as a country during the tournament, especially given concerns regarding human rights and the treatment of migrant workers in the build-up to the tournament.

MORE WORLD CUP 2022:
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Sanchez will hope to focus attention on the pitch — with a hard-working squad who will be determined to put on a show.

Qatar World Cup Group A

Qatar will have to overcome two of the perceived heavyweights from both Africa and Europe if they are to make it past the group stages of their own tournament.

Defending Africa Cup of Nations champions Senegal will pose a real challenge, with all eyes likely to be on their talismanic Liverpool striker Sadio Mane.

Qatar's final group game, against another Liverpool man Virgil van Dijk and his Netherlands side, could have everything on the line.

The opening fixture for Qatar will see the hosts meet Ecuador on Nov. 21, in a game that is arguably the most winnable of the three. Victory there would offer the hosts the perfect way to kick-start the tournament. 

World Cup Group A table & fixtures

Team PTS GP W L D GF GA GD
A1: Qatar 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
A2: Ecuador 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
A3: Senegal 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
A4: Netherlands 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Group A match schedule

Date Match Time (ET) Stadium
Mon, Nov. 21 Senegal vs. Netherlands 5 a.m. Al Thumama Stadium
Mon, Nov. 21 Qatar vs. Ecuador 11 a.m. Al Bayt Stadium
Fri, Nov. 25 Qatar vs. Senegal 8 a.m. Al Thumama Stadium
Fri, Nov. 25 Netherlands vs. Ecuador 11 a.m. Khalifa Int'l Stadium
Tues, Nov. 29 Netherlands vs. Qatar 10 a.m. Al Bayt Stadium
Tues, Nov. 29 Ecuador vs. Senegal 10 a.m. Khalifa Int'l Stadium


Qatar World Cup snapshot

As the 2022 World Cup host, Qatar is determined to put on a show for football fans around the globe, and that includes on the field. 

The small Gulf nation with a population under three million has invested significantly in its national team program over the last decade, since it won the right to host the tournament back in Dec. 2010.

Since then, the cash outlay on player development, coaching and infrastructure has paid off, with a No. 51 FIFA World Ranking, up from 112th. It also resulted in a first Asian Cup in 2019.

With ex-Barcelona youth coach Sanchez leading the way since 2017, Qatar boast an attack-minded, entertaining playing style, which is sure to win over fans no matter how far they advance in their first World Cup appearance.

  • Current FIFA World Ranking: No. 51 (March 2022)
  • World Cup titles: 0
  • World Cup appearances (last): 0 ( N/A)
  • How qualified: Hosts
  • Record
    • 2021 12W-7L-5D (Goals: 35 scored / 32 conceded)
    • 2022 1W-0L-0D (Goals: 2 scored / 1 conceded)


Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022 preview

Qatar usually look to get the ball down and play, with either a three or five-man back line to make full use of the width of the pitch.

The entire squad plays in Qatar, with winger Akram Afif noted as one of the most talented players in the team.

Captain Hassan Al Haydos is their stalwart who will lead by example, although he was ruled out of the latest friendly fixture round in March due to injury.

  • Star Players: Akram Afif (Al Sadd / Qatar), Almoez Ali (Al Duhail / Qatar), Hassan Al Haydos (Al Sadd / Qatar).
  • Players to Watch: Tarek Salman (Al Sadd / Qatar), Mohammed Al Bayati (Al Saad / Qatar)

Strengths: 

  • Width: Qatar can pose a threat on the counter-attack, particularly through Afif, who traditionally cuts in from the left to attack the opposition.
  • Cohesion: There is a lot of familiarity within the Qatar squad, with many of the players used to playing with each other at club level as part of the Al Saad side. 

Weaknesses: 

  • Solidity: Despite having a fluid defensive formation, they can be vulnerable at the back and may find it tough to contain the world-class attacking talent against the perceived bigger nations.
  • Injuries: There are concerns that if some of Qatar's key players are missing then they could struggle, as there is not a lot of depth in their squad. 

Qatar Squad

Name Position Age Club Caps/Goals
Mahmud Abunada  Goalkeeper 22 Al-Arabi 0/0
Yusuf Abdurisag Winger 22 Al-Sadd 13/1
Akram Afif Winger 25 Al-Sadd 78/23
Homam Ahmed Defender 22 Al-Gharafa 19/2
Abdullah Al-Ahrak Midfielder 24 Al-Duhail 21/1
Sultan Al-Brake Defender 25 Al-Duhail 4/0
Salem Al-Hajri Defender 25 Al-Sadd 22/0
Hassan Al-Haydos Forward 31 Al-Sadd 161/33
Bassam Al-Rawi Defender 24 Al-Duhail 47/2
Saad Al Sheeb Goalkeeper 32 Al-Sadd 76/0
Ahmed Alaaeldin Forward 29 Al-Gharafa 43/1
Almoez Ali Forward 25 Al-Duhail 72/39
Hashim Ali Midfielder 21 Al-Rayyan 0/0
Ali Assadalla  Midfielder 28 Al-Sadd 54/12
Meshaal Barsham Goalkeeper 24 Al-Sadd 12/0
Karim Boudiaf Midfielder 31 Al-Duhail 104/5
Ahmed Fatehi  Midfielder 29 Al-Arabi 11/0
Abdelkarim Hassan Defender 28 Al-Sadd 117/15
Yousef Hassan  Goalkeeper 25 Al-Gharafa 7/0
Abdulaziz Hatem Midfielder 31 Al-Rayyan 93/11
Musab Kheder Defender 28 Al-Sadd 27/0
Boualem Khouki  Defender 31 Al-Sadd 93/20
Assim Madibo  Midfielder 25 Al-Duhail 40/0
Abdullah Marafee Midfielder 29 Al-Arabi 0/0
Ismaeel Mohammad  Midfielder 31 Al-Duhail 61/4
Khalid Muneer  Midfielder 23 Al-Wakrah 1/0
Mohammed Muntari Striker 28 Al-Duhail 43/12
Ro-Ro Defender 31 Al-Sadd 76/1
Tarek Salman Defender 24 Al-Sadd 50/0
Ahmed Suhail  Defender 23 Al-Arabi 1/0
Abdulrasheed Umaru Forward 22 Al-Ahli 0/0
Mohammed Waad  Midfielder 22 Al-Sadd 14/0
Salah Zakaria  Goalkeeper 22 Al-Duhail 0/0


Who is Qatar head coach?

  • Coach (Nationality): Felix Sanchez (Spain)
  • Date hired: July 2017
  • Record as national team manager (W-L-D): 41-23-14
  • Major titles since hire: AFC Asian Cup 2019

Notable victories: 6-0 v North Korea (2019), 6-0 v Afghanistan (2019).


Qatar World Cup build-up results

Qatar's results so far in preparation for the tournament have been rather mixed, although there have been some notable results, such as a draw with the Republic of Ireland. 

Date Opponent Competition H/A Result Score
March 30th 2021 Republic of Ireland Friendly N Draw 1-1
June 3rd India Asian Cup qualifiers Win 1-0
June 7th Oman Asian Cup qualifiers A Win 1-0
July 4th El Salvador Friendly N Win 1-0
July 13th Panama CONCACAF Gold Cup N Draw 3-3
July 17th Grenada CONCACAF Gold Cup N Win 4-0
July 20th Honduras CONCACAF Gold Cup N Win 2-0
July 24th El Salvador CONCACAF Gold Cup N Win 3-2
July 29th United States CONCACAF Gold Cup N Defeat 0-1
September 1st Serbia Friendly N Defeat 0-4
September 4th Portugal Friendly N Defeat 1-3
September 7th Luxembourg Friendly A Draw 1-1
October 9th Portugal Friendly A Defeat 0-3
October 12th Republic of Ireland Friendly A Defeat 0-4
November 11th Serbia Friendly A Defeat 0-4
November 14th Azerbaijan Friendly A Draw 2-2
November 30th Bahrain FIFA Arab Cup H Win 1-0
December 3rd Oman FIFA Arab Cup H Win 2-1
December 6th

Iraq

FIFA Arab Cup H Win 3-0
December 10th United Arab Emirates FIFA Arab Cup H Win  5-0
December 15th Algeria  FIFA Arab Cup H Defeat 1-2
December 18th Egypt FIFA Arab Cup H Draw (Qatar won on penalties) 0-0

March 26th

Bulgaria Friendly H Win 2-1

March 29th

Slovenia Friendly H Draw 0-0

Jeorge Bird