Whether you’re setting the alarm to watch it live, or plan to watch the recorded highlights, Monday’s opening game at the FIFA World Cup might still require a bit of planning.
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And here’s our day-by-day match guide (with New Zealand kick-off times) to help you plan your viewing:
Tomorrow’s action
Game to be played on Monday November 21, 2022
Group A
Qatar v Ecuador
Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, 5am (NZT)
Watch: Live on Sky Sport channel 7 from 4.30am.
New Zealand connection
Someone to look out for: Qatari defender Tarek Salman (shirt 5).
In 2015, he played one game in New Zealand, for Qatar against Senegal in their FIFA U-20 World Cup match at Hamilton’s FMG Stadium.
It was his only appearance in New Zealand but he’s since become a regular in the full Qatar side, making 58 appearances.
Watch for …
… Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Domínguez. He’s 35 and the steadying influence for the third-youngest squad at the World Cup. He’s 6′ 4″ and is a legend at title-winning club Liga de Quito for whom he played almost 300 games.
When he was 20, he went unbeaten for 719 minutes of football with the club.
Man in the middle
Don’t be surprised if there are a few cards brandished by referee Daniele Orsato, the first Italian given the honour of officiating at the opening game of a World Cup.
In 263 Serie A matches, he’s shown 1,405 yellow cards and 23 straight red cards, sending off 39 players for second yellow cards. That’s more than five cards a game.
Main photo: Alarm clock image courtesy of Jessica Delp/Unsplashed.
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