Qatar lost its final group match of the FIFA World Cup 1-3 to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and midfielder Hatem was interviewed in the mixed zone after the match.

You drew 0-0 in your opening match against the strongest team in your group, then suffered two consecutive defeats. How do you assess Qatar's performance at this tournament? Will the experience gained at this FIFA World Cup help the Qatar team in the future?

Thanks be to God, whatever the result, we have to accept it. As I said after the first match, we played well and earned 1 point. But ultimately, this is the highest level of competition; this is the FIFA World Cup.

In the second match, I think we did not perform at the level we should have; that match affected us greatly, and the goal difference was significant. Today, I feel we played quite well; the team tried and created some chances, but we didn't capitalize on them. This is the FIFA World Cup; if you can't convert your chances and your opponent scores, it becomes very difficult to come back. We did our best; we had the opportunity to equalize, and if we had succeeded, the course of the match could have been different. But ultimately, we didn't manage it. On a stage like the FIFA World Cup, you have to be brave and dare to try.

At the same time, we must remember that we are two-time AFC Asian Cup champions. Over the years, we have performed well in many tournaments, including the Copa América, the Gold Cup, and the Arab Cup. We hoped to advance to the next round, but that didn't happen.

We could have done better and shown a higher level. But now the most important thing is to learn from this experience and continue working hard. We hope that at the next FIFA World Cup, we can advance further and perform better. We hope that by then we will be more confident, more experienced, and have improved our overall strength.

What was the difference between Qatar's participation in the 2022 FIFA World Cup and this time in 2026? What lessons have you drawn from this tournament?

In 2022, it was our first FIFA World Cup appearance, and we played at home in front of our fans. That was also the FIFA World Cup, but because it was held at home, we were under immense pressure. In that first match, we didn't play as we should have. I think that after not playing well in the first match, the subsequent matches became even more difficult. Still, we did our best in the final two matches. This time we came here with more experience, and the overall situation is also better. In the first match, we earned 1 point and should have maintained or even improved on that performance.

But as I said when I left this tournament, we need to be bolder. We have the ability and good players, and we could have performed better, especially in the second match. That's football; if you don't dare to play, don't dare to attack, and don't dare to fight for goals, the match becomes very difficult.

First, I want to offer you encouragement. Qatar's performance at this FIFA World Cup was better than last time; you earned 1 point and scored two goals. The Qatar team has also undergone many changes. Do you believe this World Cup experience will help Qatar defend their title at the 2027 AFC Asian Cup?

It will definitely help. After all, this is the highest level of competition in the world, and we can gain a lot of positive experience from it. This experience will help the young players in the team grow and will also give them more motivation. We hope this will also inspire the entire Qatar team to win the AFC Asian Cup for the third consecutive time. We pray to God to bless us and allow us to continue on this path.

Can you speak about the team's reaction after falling behind by two goals? How did the team adjust and score a goal to make it 2-1?

It was indeed difficult to be two goals down, but we didn't give up. We stuck to our tactical plan and continued to play our way. Then we created chances and pulled the score back to 2-1. After that, we still had many opportunities. I think if we had made better decisions in handling some key moments, we might have gotten back into the match. But that's football; if you don't score, the opponent might. You have to take your chances.

You played very well in the latter part of the first half, but then things seemed to get out of control. What was discussed within the team after the match? How do you move forward from such moments?

Yes, that's true. We felt capable, especially in the first half, where we created some chances, and the match was very competitive at that time. We also felt we had a chance to get back into the match. But we were facing a very strong team. I also want to congratulate Bosnia and Herzegovina; they played an excellent match.

After falling behind 0-2, what do you think of the team's response?

When it became 0-2, it was indeed not easy. But the positive thing is that we scored the 1-2 goal, which gave us some confidence and momentum. We always believed we still had a chance. But that's football. As I said, we were facing a very good team.

What do you think of Bosnia and Herzegovina's captain Džeko? What is your opinion of him after playing against him in such a match?

We all know Džeko very well; everyone knows him. He has had a brilliant career and is an outstanding striker. He didn't score today, but his presence on the field was still very strong, and his physical condition was also excellent. Playing against a player of his caliber is in itself a great experience.

Übersetzt von KI.

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