Carlos Tenorio: Qatar is technically one step higher than Ecuador

“The 2022 World Cup is going to be played in a country like Qatar, which due to its surroundings (and geographical extension, 11,610 square kilometers) is going to give a lot to talk about. There will be no excuses from players for long trips” that must be made between one venue and another, Carlos Tenorio said yesterday on the program THE UNIVERSE World Cup, broadcast on Facebook of this newspaper and on YouTube.

The Demolition Man, now 42 years old, is a connoisseur of Qatari football thanks to the six seasons he played for Al Sadd in that country. “I think it will be the World Cup that will show the evolution of several South American teams and the recovery of protagonists such as Argentina and Brazil,” Tenorio said about the FIFA tournament that will begin on November 21.

The former striker spoke about various issues related to the Qatar tournament and focused part of his comments on what the Tricolor led by Gustavo Alfaro could do, which will debut against the Qataris in the second group match (key completed by the Netherlands and Senegal, protagonists of the first duel of the World Cup, also on November 21).

Tenorio said that for the National Team “it will be easy, but we have a generation of players who are adapted to the international football moment. With that cover letter, Ecuador can give a surprise. Ecuador needs to start thinking about something a little bigger. This will be our fourth World Cup and we cannot go only as participants. It is time to demand more of ourselves, to do things that certify our growth.”

A World Cup player in Japan-South Korea in 2002 and in Germany in 2006, Tenorio affirms that he knows all the national teams that are in Qatar today. “Because at the time I was playing there they were in the lower categories of their clubs. When the leaders decided to put together the growth project, to make themselves known through football, they invested in sports infrastructure”.

alerted the Demolition Man: “If as Ecuadorians we say that we are going to beat Qatar because it is an unknown team, I don’t think it will be that easy. What is certain is that Ecuador has options, but they also have them. Qatar is the opposite of a physically strong team, they are very light footballers. But technically I can assure you that they are one step higher than the Ecuadorian National Team and many others that are going to play in the World Cup”.

Tenorio deepened: “Because of what they have been investing in coaches, training and infrastructure, Qatar must be taken into account. We will have to face them with a lot of concentration. Football is not played with the mouth but with the feet, the head and the heart”.

For Ecuador, the match against Qatar “will be very complicated,” said the Demolition Man because the homeowner “at least in the first round is going to fight to qualify”. (D)