Kuwait City, Kuwait, May 21, 2022: Qatar volleyball coach Camilo Soto has one mantra at the Gulf Games – to take it one game at a time – as the main threat to pre-tournament favourites Bahrain moved a step closer towards the goal of winning the gold medal with an emphatic victory over Saudi Arabia on Saturday, May 21.
“The round robin format doesn’t leave much room for a defeat. You lose and your gold medal hopes are all but over, as such we are just taking it one game at a time, point by point,” said the vastly experienced Argentine, who has been at the helm of the Qatar men’s national team since December, 2017.
Qatar defeated Saudi Arabia 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-20) to keep a clean slate at the 3rd GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Games Kuwait 2022 following a similar 3-0 win over Oman in their opening encounter.
“Every match is a big game as there are no semi-finals. So the pressure is right on us, but I’m pleased with the way the guys are playing. They are showing a lot of patience and are not in a hurry to finish off a point,” said the 46-year-old Soto, a former national player who won the 1995 Pan-American Games gold with Argentina.
Led by the impressive Ibrahim Ibrahim, Qatar were hardly troubled as they eased past their Saudi opponents and registered their second win in the tournament without dropping a set.
“Yes, Bahrain as two-time defending gold medallists are everyone’s favourite, but we are not looking so far ahead. Right now our immediate concern is Kuwait who we play next. We have to win that match because if we lose, then the gold medal outcome is out of our hands, and we will have to depend on results going our way. Better to win and keep it all in our control,” said Soto.
On form, the gold medal decider is likely when Qatar come up against Bahrain on Monday, May 23.
