Sebastian Soria, the striker of Qatar Club and our national team, expressed his thanks and appreciation towards our national team star Akram Afif after giving the leadership signal to Syria after he came on in the last UAE match instead of Almoez Ali in the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in the United States of America, Canada and Mexico, in which Al-Anabi succeeded in qualifying for the World Cup after winning by two goals to one.
Syria was keen to write a post for him on his official Instagram account: “Thank you, Akram, for your wonderful gesture. Giving me the captaincy had a great impact on me, and this not only shows a great player, but also the great person and true leader behind him. I feel very proud and honored to represent Qatar again.
Suriya also confirmed after the UAE match and qualification, “It is a historic day and a truly wonderful day. Honestly, this generation, having won the Asian Cup twice, has a special mix of new players, as well as some experienced ones like me. So we are very happy.”
“We fully deserve this achievement,” he added. This country and this team have worked for many years to achieve this great dream, and today it has become a reality. “We are so happy, it’s a really amazing feeling.”
Regarding his feeling of returning to the ranks of the national team, he said: “For me, when I was informed that I would return to the ranks of the national team, I felt extremely happy. Even when I was out and about to watch some matches, it was always emotional to see such a big crowd supporting us. Playing in front of them and wearing the Qatar national team jersey always remains an honor and an indescribable pleasure.”
The list of two play-off matches for Al-Anabi witnessed the player’s return to our national team after 8 years, 6 months and 20 days, as Sebastian Soria’s last appearance with our national team was in the match against Iran in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers. Despite his advanced age, Sebastian Soria did not know how to give up, but rather remained a warrior, and his heart beat with love for Al-Anabi. He proved to everyone that he is an example of loyalty, respect, consistency and commitment, until he achieved his dream, participating in the decisive match against the Emirates and scoring. In his biography, he contributed to qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, for the second time in the World Cup, and the first of its kind in the qualification system, given that the first appearance in 2022 was with Qatar as host of the edition.
