Asian Cup Final Biggest Stage Yet For Jordan's Trailblazer Tamari

Doha, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Feb, 2024) Son Heung-min was supposed to have been the star of the show in the semi-finals but instead it was Mousa Al-Tamari whose sparkling display fired Jordan to the brink of Asian Cup glory.

The pacy 26-year-old made one goal and scored the other as Jordan saw off Son's South Korea 2-0 to surge into Saturday's final for the first time in their history.

There they will meet hosts and reigning champions Qatar.

On paper Jordan -- 87 in FIFA's rankings -- are the underdogs but with Tamari and fellow forward Yazan Al-Naimat in red-hot form, nobody would bet against them pulling off another shock.

Tamari, who also scored twice in a 4-0 thrashing of Malaysia at the start of the tournament, is the only member of the Jordan squad playing in Europe.

More than that, he has made a success of it, first in Belgian football with Oud-Heverlee Leuven and since last summer with top-flight French side Montpellier.

He moved to the Ligue 1 club on a free transfer after his contract with Leuven expired, having reportedly had options too in Spain, Turkey and England's second tier.

The first Jordanian to play in France's Ligue 1, Tamari has been a revelation in making 16 appearances for a struggling Montpellier team, scoring five times.

"He's strong, he keeps going and he defends too," Montpellier's coach Michel Der Zakarian purred after Tamari made a fast start to life in France.

"He's a cool guy and he's a hard worker."

As Jordan's best-known player and a fast dribbler with flair, Tamari has inevitably been dubbed "the Jordanian Messi", something he is not a fan of.