Qatar are the worst World Cup hosts the tournament has ever had. And that is purely from a footballing perspective. Just two matches, and five days after the tournament began, Qatar are all but out after a 3-1 defeat to Senegal.
At least they registered a goal as Mohammed Muntari made World Cup history as the nation’s first ever scorer with a history that was ultimately worth nothing, even if it meant a whole lot.
The African champions got up and running by becoming their continent's first winners at this World Cup, but the host nation simply aren’t good enough to play on this stage. They didn’t register a shot on target in their first game, a 2-0 defeat to Ecuador, and it took until the 62nd minute here, when the game was already lost, for them to have an attempt on goal.
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Remember this is a side that was placed in pot one for this World Cup. It has completely unbalanced the tournament and given the other three teams in their group a free three points.They may have spent $220bn to host the tournament, but surely they are regretting that decision at this point.
In what is a World Cup rarity, there were pockets of empty seats for a match involving the home nation, as the Senegal fans were bringing the atmosphere. Sure, not as many fans supporting the home nation deserted them at half-time but it was hardly a strong showing from the Qatar faithful.
They were and have looked out of their depth for 180 minutes. Senegal started well and headed an effort wide early on and Idrissia Gueye skimmed the edge of the post with a long range shot. It was a sign of things to come as Senegal flexed their muscles.
Akram Afif went down under a challenge in the box, but he invited the tackle rather than shooting and made the most of any contact. The claims were ones of desperation rather than genuine belief from Qatar, who failed to trouble Edouard Mendy in the first half.
Senegal lacked creativity but they did make the breakthrough just before half-time as Boulaye Dia bagged his fourth goal for Senegal. It was an awful piece of defending from Boualem Khoukhi, who failed to clear, and Dia fired home from inside the box.
Two minutes into the second half Famara Diedhiou made a near-post run from a corner and guided a wonderful diving header into the top corner. The former Bristol City man was making his first start of the tournament and made a big impact, showing his aerial strength as he put the game out of reach for the hosts.
To be fair to them, at 2-0 down, Qatar did come back into the game. Mendy was on hand to deny Ismaeel Mohammad from close range. The midfielder should have scored but was denied by a fantastic save from one of the world’s best.
Qatar showed more energy in the second period and got a historic goal at the World Cup as Muntari nailed a header into the far corner after an astonishing cross-field pass and delightful cross. That goal came just four minutes after he replaced the captain
But Senegal were still the far superior team and got their third goal with five minutes of normal time to play. Bamba Dieng found some space in the middle and after some fine work from Sheffield United’s Iliman Ndiaye, found the net following a fine cut-back.
Qatar looked like they could compete in spells, but ultimately they have fallen well short. A point apiece or a Netherlands win in their game vs Ecuador will confirm that the host nation are out at the group stage. It was predictable ahead of the tournament, but seeing it in the flesh makes you realise how silly the footballing decision to award them the World Cup was.
