Héctor Cúper
made history this Tuesday at the head of the
Syrian National Team
, qualifying for the first time in the history of that team to the round of 16 of the
Asian Cup
.
The
Qasyoun Eagles
, as they are called, achieved this milestone after beating
India
1-0, with a goal from
Omar Khribin
.
The Syrian team, which had tied with Uzbekistan at the start of the competition 0-0 and was defeated by Australia 1-0 last day, with the victory in its last match in group B was placed in third place, position that allowed her to access the second round as one of the best third parties in the competition.
The former coach of Huracán, Lanús, Mallorca and Inter, among other clubs, and of the teams of Georgia, Egypt, Uzbekistan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, at international level, continues to make history at 68 years old.
Those who could not hold back the emotion after Syria's achievement were Cúper's translator and a journalist from that country, in contact with the mixed zone after the game, with the team's feat still fresh.
Syria qualified for the round of 16 of the Asian Cup thanks to Cúper.
The reaction of the translator and the journalist is everything.pic.twitter.com/tkrAtUhV9F
— Alejandro Varsky (@pollo_va) January 23, 2024
The coach's translator burst into tears and had to be consoled by the reporter, who also hugged him with tears in his eyes while Cúper left the place silently and respectfully.
Syria, which is currently ranked 91st in the FIFA ranking, was reinforced with the arrival of Cúper and the call-up of several foreign players of Syrian origin.
Among them three Argentines stand out,
Ezequiel Ham
, who has just been promoted with Independiente Rivadavia de Mendoza to the First Division;
the former San Lorenzo,
Jalil Elías
, and the Belgrano de Córdoba player,
Ibrahim Hesar
.
To these three footballers we must add the cases of the Swedes
Aiham Ousou
and
Antonio Yakoub
, the Greek
Abdul Rahman Weiss
and the Colombian
Pablo Sabbag
.
"It is a country very affected by border problems, but now there are none. Damascus is a quiet city. I came to work in worse situations, like when I was managing the Georgia team and there was a war about 80 kilometers away. Of course "If things get complicated, I'm not going to stay. Nobody forces me to live in Syria, but I want to be here," said the coach when he arrived at the national team a year ago.