by Hani Al-Masdar broke into the first team of Gaza club Al-Maghazi in the late 90s when he was 16 and went on to have a successful career as a talented midfielder. After retiring in 2018, the generous father-of-four joined the Palestine Under-23 team, officially, initially, as kit manager.
A natural at dealing with players who had an instinct to read the game, he soon obtained the highest coaching licenses in Asia and became an assistant coach. The 42-year-old had a bright future but on January 6, the Palestine Football Association (PFA) announced that he had been killed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City.
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“He was one of the great talents of Palestinian football,” says Makram Daboub, head coach of the Palestinian national team. “It is a great loss.”
As Palestine begin their campaign against Iran in the Asian Cup on Sunday, the news from home is grim, where death and destruction have rained down on Gaza for more than three months. “Of course it’s difficult for everyone,” says Daboub.
Forward Mahmoud Wadi and defender Mohammed Saleh play abroad but are natives of the narrow strip of land that suffers from relentless, ferocious bombing. Daboub says: “Those who are from Gaza are concerned about the safety of their loved ones and friends but all the players are on their phones whenever possible. This makes it difficult for them but they still have the determination to give everything at the Asian Cup.”
This is the third place in a row at the tournament, the biggest football event on the continent, for Palestine, which became a full member of FIFA in 1998 after a struggle of decades. Their debut game will attract a lot of international attention like no other. The 23 teams in the Asian Cup – won by Israel in 1964 before being kicked out in 1974 and joining Uefa – face the same questions.
“Success in the competition would mean a lot to us and our family. It is extremely important, especially given the exceptional circumstances in Palestine,” says Daboub. “We want to send a message to the world that there are people in Palestine who deserve a better life, who love peace and who deserve freedom.”
There has been no peace or freedom since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 which led to a massacre that, according to the Gaza health ministry, left more than 23,000 people in Gaza, 1% of the territory’s population, and, according to the Associates. Press last week, destroyed a third of the buildings. The PFA has accused Israel of targeting athletes as well as football facilities. Football is the most popular sport in Palestine, and Gaza and the West Bank have their own leagues, but there have been no games since October. Even if it were safe to play, there is no place to do so.
Before the Hamas attack, Daboub knew all about the frustrations that come with being the head coach of Palestine. Tunisia, appointed in 2021, says it has never been allowed into Gaza to watch matches or meet players, although it has been allowed into the West Bank.
The difficulties also extend the other way. Players selected for international duty from both territories have complained for years about long delays at Israeli checkpoints when trying to report for duty.
As for the World Cup qualifiers against Lebanon and Australia in November – played in neutral venues – the callers from Gaza couldn’t figure it out at all. Since then, the national team has stayed outside of Palestine, first in Jordan before proceeding with the move.
“The preparation has gone well despite the difficult circumstances,” says Daboub. “On December 12 we started with the first camp in Algeria, and then the second camp was in Saudi Arabia.”
The camps were funded by the host nations. “Their main goal was to focus on the physicality of the players. On January 2, we traveled to Qatar, where we were joined by nine other players and this was the start of the actual preparation for the cup.
“We have played two training games. We lost to Uzbekistan 1-0 and drew with Saudi Arabia 0-0. We included all the players to determine their technical and physical fitness. We are now ready and looking forward to the challenges ahead.”
Attacker Oday Dabbagh, who has scored five goals for Sporting Charleroi in Belgium this season, is one of those late arrivals. The local people as well as the Palestinians who are settled in the region will give good support to the person born in Jerusalem. There could be some emotional scenes, especially if the team manages to win the first Asian Cup.
That is the main objective even if the group consisting of Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong is a tough group. “We know what we have to do,” says Daboub. “The Iran game is a big game against one of the best teams in Asia. It will be a very difficult game, but we will try to come out with a positive result.”
The final match with Hong Kong, the lowest ranked team in the group at 150 – 51 places below Palestine – is expected to offer the best chance.
“The Hong Kong game is very important,” says Daboub of their opponents, who rose to the occasion last week by beating China for the first time since their country became a British territory. “A lot of people say they are the weakest team and it is the game we have to win but all the games are important. I can say that no matter what happens, we will do whatever it takes to get to the round of 16.”
Getting to the winning stages was truly a cause for celebration. Given that the top two teams from each of the six groups of four and the top four third-placed teams go through, it is a realistic one and the tragic circumstances at home could push Palestine to make history.
“The atmosphere among the players is excellent and we in the national team work as a group and everyone supports them,” says Daboub. “Our goal is to show a face that honors Palestinian football and puts a smile on the faces of our people. Despite the pain, we want to give them hope.”
