Jordan and Qatar put friendship aside to battle for Asian football's ultimate prize

Hussein Ammouta spoke of the final having a familial feel, despite the significant stakes at play.

“The Qatari team have good players,” he said on Friday, less than 36 hours before his Jordan side meet the current continental champions, on their own patch, for Asia’s premier prize.

“I know them from when they were young. When I was in Al Sadd, I considered them my little brothers, so it will be a family match tomorrow.”

Indeed, it’s easy to understand. As Ammouta referenced, he shares more of an affiliation than most with Saturday’s opponents.

A Moroccan midfielder with a modest playing career until arriving in Qatar in 1997, Ammouta lifted every major domestic title during four years with capital club Al Sadd. He departed in 2001 but remained in the city, adding a second top-flight title with Qatar SC two years later.

Returning to Sadd in 2011, initially as technical director, Ammouta transitioned to the dugout to guide his former employers to Qatar Stars League success a decade after his last championship trophy as a player.

It snapped a six-year drought for Sadd, the country’s most decorated club. As a result, Ammouta was voted the competition's 2012/13 manager of the season.

He would leave in 2015, but not before twice leading his side to the Emir of Qatar Cup, the country’s most prestigious cup competition, and the 2014 Sheikh Jassim Cup.

So, it came as no real surprise on Friday when, a day out from the most high-profile match in Jordan’s history and the preeminent fixture in Asian football, at Qatar’s glittering Lusail Stadium, that Ammouta went on something of a charm offensive.

“The Qatar Football Association is behind the success,” he said of the holders, through to a second successive final. “Since I was with