Can Qatar’s Afif—Asian Footballer of the Year—carry the team alone?

If Qatar still has someone who can make Canada’s defensive line feel troubled, it must be Akram Afif. Two-time Asian Footballer of the Year, the absolute core of Qatar’s squad, with a market value of 8 million euros—the highest in the team.

Afif’s strengths are that he is fast, has good dribbling, and has a wide passing vision. He usually plays as a left winger or as an attacking midfielder, and is good at cutting inside and shooting or passing with his right foot. Qatar’s attack is almost entirely built around him—he receives the ball, he breaks through, he delivers crosses, and he shoots. It can be said that whether Qatar can score depends on Afif’s condition for 90%.

But the problem is that Afif alone has to face the encirclement of Canada’s entire defensive line. Canada’s midfield will give him special attention, not allowing him comfortable space to receive the ball. And Afif’s ability to hold up in physical duels is average—facing those physically strong defenders from Canada, he can be easily pushed out of his comfort zone.

Another attacking outlet for Qatar is Almoez Ali, the team’s all-time leading scorer. He is a big-bodied center forward, good at heading and back-to-goal hold-up play. But in the past two seasons, he has been troubled by injuries, leading to inconsistent playing time. Against the physical battles with Canada’s center backs, whether Ali can handle it is also a question mark.

To be honest, Qatar’s attack relies too much on these two people—Afif and Ali. Once they are contained, Qatar’s offense is basically paralyzed. If Canada can simply shut down these two points, it will be very difficult for Qatar to create threats. In the first round against Switzerland, Qatar managed only 6 shots in the whole match—that is the best proof.

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