Jordan face Morocco in Thursday night's Fifa Arab Cup final desperate to make up for the bitter disappointment of their previous Doha title match.
The game will take place at the Lusail Stadium (8pm UAE), the same venue as their February 2023 Asian Cup final defeat to Qatar.
Several members of the squad remain from that 3-1 loss – in which Akram Afif scored a hat-trick of penalties – and will be eager to go one better and crown what is already a golden period for Jordanian football with a trophy.
In between reaching two tournament finals, the team also secured a first qualification for the Fifa World Cup, and next summer Jamal Sellami's side will play alongside reigning champions Argentina, Algeria and Austria in Group J in North America.
Before that, the Casablanca-born Sellami will seek to upset his compatriots when Jordan take on Morocco in the Qatari capital. But just like two years ago, they will start as the underdogs.
Midfielder Rajaei Ayed, an unused substitute in 2023, starred in Jordan's semi-final win over Saudi Arabia and is confident their momentum can take them all the way.
“We’re capable of winning the title. We now have the experience, having played a final at the same stadium and this time we’re ready to go one step further,” insisted Ayed, 32, who plays his club football in Iraq for Al Najaf.
Veteran defender Saleem Obaid also said their Asian Cup final defeat was spurring on the group.
“We’re ready for our second final in Qatar,” he said. “Luck wasn’t on our side last time, but we hope it will be with us this time so our fans can celebrate the title. We have what it takes to get the job done.”
Left-back Mohammad Abu Hasheesh accepted his side are the outsiders but said that focusing on their own strengths and playing their own game has been behind their sustained progress over the past couple of years.
“I hope this title will be ours,” said the 30-year-old full-back. “We’re on the right path. Thank you to our fans and to the Jordanian people. We need to focus on ourselves and aim to deliver the performance expected of us. If we manage to do that, we’ll be close to achieving what we want.”
Jordan have reached the final with a perfect record of five wins from five. They started the group stage with a 2-1 win over UAE before a 3-1 victory against Kuwait and an emphatic 3-0 thrashing of Egypt.
While the goals flowed in the group stage, it has been Jordan's miserly defence that has shone in the knockouts with a pair of 1-0 wins, over Iraq in the last eight and then against Herve Renard's Saudi Arabia in the semi-finals.
Issam Smeeri, who marked Saudi danger man Salem Al Dawsari out of that game, was full of praise for his coach's tactics.
“You have to play with full concentration until the final whistle,” he said. “We did exactly as the coach asked, applying his instructions to the letter, while also working on our mental strength to maintain our level throughout.
“Knockout games are decided by fine margins, but we stayed focused, achieved our goal, and we thank the Jordanian fans for helping us along the way.
“I thank God for granting me success in this match, and I thank coach Jamal Sellami for the confidence he showed in me at this stage of the tournament.
“I’m happy that I had the opportunity to play, and this was my moment to deliver. There’s no doubt that Salem Al Dawsari is an outstanding player and part of a top national team, but with God’s help, I was able to limit his threat and deliver a positive performance. I’m hoping to play even better going forward.”
Shackling tournament favourites Morocco will prove a tall order for the Jordanians, but Abu Hasheesh believes another clean sheet probably represents their best chance of success.
“We’re all on the same page. Our aim is to maintain this run of clean sheets in the next game to secure a win,” he said.
Despite sending a shadow squad to the tournament, Morocco eased into the final with a 3-0 semi-final win over Cosmin Olaroiu’s UAE, such is the depth of their roster.
Their first-choice players will soon meet up for international duty, and victory in Doha would give the Atlas Lions the perfect boost ahead of hosting the 35th Africa Cup of Nations. The opening game of that tournament sees them entertain Comoros on Sunday in Rabat.
Earlier on Thursday, the UAE will look to end their Arab Cup campaign on a high when they face Saudi Arabia in the third-place play-off (3pm UAE).
The Emiratis shook off the disappointment of their failed World Cup qualification bid to reach the last four in Qatar, with a 3-1 group stage win over Kuwait and a quarter-final shoot-out victory over Algeria being the highlights.
