My Football Facts ⇒ Articles
Lionel Messi and his wealthy Argentina teammates have decided to make student halls their base for the duration of their stay in Qatar during the World Cup instead of the five star hotels available to them.
The Argentina National team arrived in Qatar in the early hours of Thursday morning ahead of the World Cup and chose the more humble Qatar University student halls rather than the more luxurious hotels in which their rival nations will be staying in.
This decision to make the student accommodation halls their base was taken after Argentine football officials saw that the size of the structure was big enough for the team to organise barbeques and make a traditional meal called asados.
An asado usually consists of beef, pork, chicken, chorizo, and morcilla which will be made on a grill or an open fire. Already, The construction of special barbecue area has been completed on the grounds of the university for the asados, which will allow the Argentine players to enjoy their barbequed delights and create a stronger bond between the players.
A source close to the Argentina camp explained that the asados are part of their culture which is important to them and it will help them get a taste of home while they are fighting to win the World Cup.
‘We visited the campus several times and chose it because not only does it have great facilities but it also has open air space for asados.
‘This is very important to the players and Argentines in general, it’s part of our culture. We want to make them feel at home while they are in Qatar and the best way to do this is to make sure that they get a taste of home while focusing on the football.’
He added: ‘You could say other teams have opted to stay in more luxurious accommodation but our team is the best in the world which also deserves the best beef. Our focus is to win the World Cup, not the quality of the hotel we are staying in.’
The asados are usually eaten with salads and accompanied with some wine and a specialist chef will be on hand to prepare the meal in the best possible way. The beef they will be using has also been flown in from Argentina. Their beef is regarded as one of the best in the world.
Situated on the outskirts of Doha, the Qatar University was founded in 1973 and is considered one of the top universities in the region. The campus dormitory is made up of 90 rooms, it also has has state of the art sports facilities, an Olympic size swimming pool and a 10,000 capacity football stadium of its own.
Argentina begin their World Cup campaign on Tuesday, against Saudi Arabia.
[wpupg-grid id=”articles”]