{"id":4235,"date":"2024-02-10T00:53:01","date_gmt":"2024-02-09T14:23:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theasiangame.net\/?p=4235"},"modified":"2026-09-25T14:07:57","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T04:37:57","slug":"class-shines-through-as-afif-stars-in-qatars-renaissance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theasiangame.net\/ro\/class-shines-through-as-afif-stars-in-qatars-renaissance\/","title":{"rendered":"Class shines through as Afif stars in Qatar&#8217;s renaissance"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3 id=\"spare-a-thought-for-aymen-hussein-the-iraq-striker-whose-tournament-ended-a-week-and-a-half-ago-as-he-sits-watches-and-no-doubt-hopes-akram-afif-doesn-t-get-on-the-scoresheet-in-the-afc-asian-cup-final-against-jordan\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Spare a thought for Aymen Hussein, the Iraq striker whose tournament ended a week and a half ago, as he sits, watches and no doubt hopes Akram Afif doesn\u2019t get on the scoresheet in the AFC Asian Cup final against Jordan.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Afif, a goal behind Hussein\u2019s tally of six, is the only realistic hope of catching the Iraqi marksman and finishing as the tournament\u2019s top scorer unless either of the Jordanian pair of Yazan Al-Naimat or Mousa Al-Taamari (or perhaps Afif\u2019s own teammate Hassan Al-Haydos) bag an unlikely hattrick in the final on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A Qatar win will also likely help settle the race for another individual honour with Afif almost certain to be crowned the tournament MVP ahead of Al-Taamari in what appears a two-horse race for that award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As much as the focus has been on the team and the unlikely match-up with Jordan, if you take Afif out of this Qatar side (or Al-Taamari out of Jordan for that matter) then the hosts aren\u2019t in the final.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s that simple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After a breakthrough tournament in 2019 as a 21-year-old, where he recorded an all-time record ten assists as Qatar won their maiden Asian Cup, Afif\u2019s star was firmly on the rise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"TAG Podcast: Afif masterclass inspires Qatar\" width=\"1290\" height=\"726\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/wiq3WZ4polc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While a return to Europe (after previous stints in Belgium and Spain) was mooted, he went on to win three straight domestic league titles with Al Sadd, multiple cups and was named in the Best XI at the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Everything was set for Afif to propel his nation forward at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, only for the player and the nation to crash spectacularly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Carded in the opener, Afif was a peripheral figure as Qatar became the first host nation in World Cup history to lose all three matches, with the team scoring just once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many assumed that may spell the end of Qatar\u2019s meteoric rise from outsiders to continental champions and then World Cup flops as the regional and global gaze shifted from Doha to Riyadh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Asian Cup preparation itself was a tumultuous one, with as many wins as losses in 2023, a high-profile coaching change on the eve of the tournament and generally muted expectations regarding the chances of the nation successfully defending their title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then came the Akram Afif show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4241\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=1536%2C1152&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=678%2C509&amp;ssl=1 678w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=326%2C245&amp;ssl=1 326w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?resize=80%2C60&amp;ssl=1 80w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvsux0WcAEm0et.jpg?w=1600&amp;ssl=1 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Goals late in both halves in an opening day win over Lebanon was followed by the winner against Tajikistan before the playmaker was rested from the starting XI for the final group match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A winner from the penalty spot in the Round of 16 was followed by another star showing in the quarters and then two assists and a goal in the semi-final upset of Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now 27, this has been a phenomenal tournament from Afif.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Second on the goal tally, leading the assist charts and with the second highest number of chances created, he\u2019s been the beating heart of the Qatari attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With football becoming so rigid and positionally disciplined, it\u2019s rare to see the game\u2019s few remaining out-and-out playmakers given almost complete liberty and freedom to control matches but credit to Marquez Lopez for doing just that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Although Afif nominally starts on the left wing in what has been a 4-3-3 or a 3-4-2-1, it\u2019s almost impossible to pin him positionally with his heat map resembling an ice-cream on a summer\u2019s day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One minute he\u2019s dropping deep, the next he\u2019s wide on the left, or coming centrally, then out on the right or dribbling into the box.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvxuNUXoAI1yBD.jpg?resize=1024%2C682&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvxuNUXoAI1yBD.jpg?resize=1024%2C682&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvxuNUXoAI1yBD.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvxuNUXoAI1yBD.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvxuNUXoAI1yBD.jpg?resize=1536%2C1023&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theasiangame.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/GFvxuNUXoAI1yBD.jpg?w=1600&amp;ssl=1 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The close control, the first touch, the movement, the ability to find and manipulate space, the creativity and the finishing have all been there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More than that though has been a real sense of the occasion and his place in it as well as other elements that can get overlooked: a refusal to drag the ball into the corner to kill time, rather constantly looking to keep play moving, but also more than a dose of \u2018gamesmanship\u2019 when needed in trying to stunt opposition momentum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The way Afif celebrated his goal against Iran shows, too, just how much it means to a player who has the chance to define both his own and his nation\u2019s legacy; if now it\u2019s Qatar\u2019s time to shine then it\u2019s very much this superb playmaker who will be the one doing the polishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Listen to <strong>The Asian Game Podcast<\/strong> LIVE from Souq Waqif after Qatar&#8217;s dramatic win over Iran<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Embed Player\" style=\"border:none\" src=\"https:\/\/play.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/29854378\/height\/128\/theme\/modern\/size\/standard\/thumbnail\/yes\/custom-color\/9cd542\/time-start\/00:00:00\/playlist-height\/200\/direction\/backward\/download\/yes\/font-color\/000000\" height=\"128\" width=\"100%\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"true\" mozallowfullscreen=\"true\" oallowfullscreen=\"true\" msallowfullscreen=\"true\"><\/iframe>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Spare a thought for Aymen Hussein, the Iraq striker whose tournament ended a week and a half ago, as he sits, watches and no doubt hopes Akram Afif doesn\u2019t get on the scoresheet in the AFC Asian Cup final against Jordan. Afif, a goal behind Hussein\u2019s tally of six, is the only realistic hope of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4016,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_gspb_post_css":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[328,161,512,146],"class_list":["post-4235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-analysis","tag-afc-asian-cup","tag-akram-afif","tag-national-teams","tag-qatar"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Class shines through as Afif stars in Qatar&#039;s renaissance - The Asian Game<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theasiangame.net\/ro\/class-shines-through-as-afif-stars-in-qatars-renaissance\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"ro_RO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Class shines through as Afif stars in Qatar&#039;s renaissance - The Asian Game\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Spare a thought for Aymen Hussein, the Iraq striker whose tournament ended a week and a half ago, as he sits, watches and no doubt hopes Akram Afif doesn\u2019t get on the scoresheet in the AFC Asian Cup final against Jordan. 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