Liverpool face Mexican side Monterrey in their opening Club World Cup fixture at the Khalifa International Stadium on December 18
Monday 16 December 2019 08:01, UK
Sky Sports News' chief reporter Bryan Swanson brings a taste of the atmosphere in Doha, Qatar - as Liverpool arrive ahead of their FIFA Club World Cup campaign.
It is the week before Christmas - and Liverpool are 3,500 miles from home.
After a seven-hour flight, the squad swept into their luxurious hotel on a dark, rainy, Doha evening, under police escort, as thousands of their fans prepared to descend on this small city on the coast of the Persian Gulf.
The 2022 World Cup hosts are delighted to have the Premier League leaders in town - and a vocal crowd were singing in the rain as they checked-in for the week.
"The amount of people who have contacted us has been mind-blowing," Amina Al-Ali, of the Doha-based fan group Qatar Reds, told Sky Sports News.
"It's huge, so exciting. We could never have dreamed we would be in this kind of situation.
"Doha will offer a completely different cultural experience. People are very welcoming, and they will go out of their way to help you.
"We're expecting 6,000 to 7,000 supporters," says Hesham Abdel Halim.
"Definitely they will feel at home here. We have huge numbers of fans. It will definitely be like the Kop!"
Qatar Reds say the most common questions from fans relate to transport, hotels, fan zones - and the weather.
Rain, rain - go away
This the perfect storm. In pleasant temperatures, Doha is experiencing thunderstorms - and only one pitch remains to absorb it all.
Jurgen Klopp is rightly irritated by a scheduling nightmare for organisers.
The Khalifa International Stadium will host every one of the tournament's five remaining matches, including two games on the same day before Liverpool face Monterrey on Wednesday night. But that was not the original plan.
The Education City Stadium did not receive a safety certificate in time, and its games were switched to the Khalifa.
Therefore, if Liverpool reach the final on Saturday night, the pitch will have endured four games over three days, and the forecast is for more rain this week.
"I've lived here for five years," says one official involved in organising the tournament.
"I've never known such a sustained period of rain, typical."
Alcohol in Doha
Qatar is a conservative country. It is not dry, and alcohol is available at licensed bars and clubs. In hotels, it is not cheap.
Typically, in the top hotels around the city's popular West Bay district, a bottle of wine seems the most expensive alcoholic drink - with the cost of some bottles running into hundreds of pounds. By comparison, the cost of a pint of beer in the same hotel is around £8.
Alcohol will not be served inside stadiums, but fans will be able to drink, more affordably, in a dedicated Fan Zone before they make the relatively short journey to the game.
In the Fan Zone at Doha Sports Park, next to the Golf Club, the cost of an "international beverage" starts at around £4.
For a premium 'Sky Lounge' experience, it will cost around £70 per person for over 21s to enjoy their top package - a hospitality deal that includes "four international beverages" and small bites of food.
FIFA has reminded fans: "Public drunkenness (similar to a 'drunk and disorderly' offence in many countries) and drinking in public is not allowed in Qatar."
New post-match routine
Liverpool's players will also experience another first for a Premier League club - they will conduct every post-match interview before they return to the dressing room.
Previously, one or two players do a few, short, interviews immediately after the game - in a 'Flash Zone' - before they have a team debrief, shower, get changed and speak to a much larger group of reporters in a 'Mixed Zone'.
But FIFA has changed its rules following a new approach in the Women's World Cup 2019 and U17 World Cup in Brazil.
In this year's Club World Cup, every player must now walk through the Mixed Zone before they return to their dressing rooms, but they do not have to stop for waiting journalists.
"The aim of this new process is… to give players more time for their post-match recovery," says FIFA.
Time will tell whether Klopp's players embrace the new routine or find it an irritation immediately after an intense game.
