Ali Asad: “I hope to improve..Playing alongside Xavi is special”

Ali Asad: “I hope to improve..Playing alongside Xavi is special”
01 Aug 2015

Ali Asad has been one of the rising stars to emerge from the Saddawi setup after making a name for himself for the Wolves last season and also starring with the national team at the Gulf Cup.
The midfielder has been training hard at the Kaprun preseason camp in order to perform even better in the upcoming season. al-saddclub.com caught up with the star and had an exclusive chat with him.

Asad made it clear that he “did not think of his performances last season as a guarantee for a first team spot, especially with the number of talented players in the team.” He realizes that he needs to improve further and work harder.

Asad was full of praise for his teammates Khalfan Ibrahim, who he considers his role model, and Hassan al Haydos, who he called the jewel of the team.

When asked about the progress of the training camp, the Qatari midfielder said that the camp was “progressing according to plan and the team will be fully prepared come the start of the season.”

Asad also took the opportunity to recollect his early days in the team, starting from his debut for the team in 2010 aged just 17. “It was Cosmin (Olariu) who selected me to travel with the team for the preseason camp in 2010; I later played for the reserve team before Hussein Amouta came and gave me a chance in the first team. I was able to show everyone my capabilities.”
With the superstar Xavi coming in to the team, Asad is excited about the opportunity to play alongside him. “Xavi is the best midfielder in the game, in addition to Andrea Pirlo, who I love to watch. His presence in the team will be a great motivating factor for all the players to perform better. He has been hugely successful at Barcelona, playing alongside Lionel Messi, who I think is the best player in the world, without a doubt.”
Asad is hopeful of learning from a master of the game like Xavi. “It is an honour for any player to play with Xavi and for us as midfielders, we have to benefit from his presence: learn from his movement, passing, vision and way of thinking. His play differs from all other top midfielders, not just in Spain but in the world.”

The Qatar national team has also benefitted from Asad recently and the youngster talked at length about his experiences with the team. “I consider the two goals I scored against Oman (at the Gulf Cup) the best of my life; it was Belmadi who gave me a chance and believed in my abilities. He predicted I would score.” Although he starred in the semifinal, he couldn’t play in the final. “I was disappointed but all that went away after the final whistle when we won the title and I was the happiest person in the world.” Asad remains hopeful of a Gulf Cup defence and also dreams of making it to Russia for the 2018 World Cup.
Finally, before signing off, Asad had this to say: “I express my thanks to all those who supported me – all the coaches who have had a role in me reaching where I am. I hope I can satisfy the coaching staff and the management in performing well during our domestic and Asian pursuits.”