Tarek Salman: We respect Hienghene Sport, we are ready for the opener

Tarek Salman stated that the Al-Sadd team is fully prepared for the opening match of the FIFA Club World Cup Qatar 2019 against Hienghene Sport from New Caledonia, which will be played on Wednesday evening at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium.

Speaking during the pre-match press conference, the Al-Sadd defender said: “We are happy to host the tournament. Al-Sadd is the host representative from the State of Qatar and this tournament is an opportunity to emulate our glory after winning bronze in 2011.”

He added: “All the players are ready to give their best and tomorrow’s match will be tough and different as well, as it is the opener.”

Tarek continued: “We respect the Hienghene Sport team and we have studied them well. Everyone is enthusiastic about giving their best in the opening match of the tournament.”

As for his participation with Al-Sadd and the Qatar national team in many important tournaments in 2019, Tarek said: “In 2019, I played many important and difficult tournaments such as the Asian Cup, the Qatar league, the Champions League, Copa America, and now there’s the Club World Cup. All of this is a great motivation for all the young talents to work and continue training hard. Every player would wish to play in a tournament the size of the Club World Cup.

On the impact of Qatar’s exit from the last Gulf Cup, the Al-Sadd star said: “All the Qatari international players at Al Sadd have enough ability to keep separate the last Gulf Cup and focus on the Club World Cup. We played well in the Gulf Cup but we were not lucky. The championship taught us lessons and we are trying to correct the path in Club World Cup, especially as these major tournaments do not come around frequently.”

Tarek added: “I am proud to have played with Xavi as a player and now as a coach. He helps us a lot, especially as he knows what every player needs and he has enough experience as a player to be a successful coach, which helps the players a lot.”