Ghanaian-born footballer Mohammed Muntari claims that his decision to naturalize and play for Qatar was not motivated by money.

Muntari, who was born in Kumasi, moved to the Arab country when he was 19 years old, in 2013. Three years later, he accepted to play for Qatar.

He played for Qatar’s U23 team before graduating to the senior team, where he has made 43 appearances and scored 12 goals so far.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with 3Sports, the 28-year-old striker explained, “It was never financial [switching to Qatar]. We play football firstly because we love football and we want to take care of the people we want to take care of.

I wouldn’t say it was financially [motivated] because, at the end of the day, I could have been playing for Ghana and still be earning much.”

Muntari went on to say that he doesn’t regret his decision, and that it was the correct one.

“Truth be told, I will choose Qatar. I will choose Qatar every single day [because of] what they did for me [and] what they are doing for my people.

“Deep inside, I knew I took the right decision so if you ask me to do it again, I will choose Qatar over Ghana. I am not saying anything bad about my beloved country Ghana,” he added.

Since his arrival in Qatar, Muntari has played for four different clubs. He began at El Jaish before moving on to Lekhwiya and Al-Duhail. Muntari is a member of Al Ahli at the moment.

Muntari won the Qatari championship in both 2017 and 2020. He has also won the Emir Cup and the Qatar Super Cup.

He is expected to be included in Qatar’s squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup later this year.