Qatar goalkeeper Saad Al Sheeb has returned to national squad after recovering from an injury.
Doha, Qatar: Qatar may have booked their AFC Asian Cup 2027 berth and advanced in the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers, head coach Marquez Lopez will look to maintain team’s winning run with victories over Afghanistan and India in their upcoming joint qualifiers.
The two-time Asian champions have been in phenomenal form this year as they are on a nine-match winning streak since their defeat to Jordan in a pre-Asian Cup friendly on January 5. Their outstanding form has placed them to 34th in the FIFA rankings – their best-ever position in the world standings. Qatar may rise further in the rankings on June 20 by winning against Afghanistan and India.
Coach Marquez Lopez's squad for the two games includes several youngsters.
Lopez’s men, who are assured of a top place in Group A of the joint qualifiers after registering four straight victories, will play against Afghanistan at Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium in Al Ahsa, Saudi Arabia on Thursday. A new-look Qatar team is preparing for the game since Thursday with Lopez intensifying national squad’s training at Aspire Academy before they depart to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
The Qatar coach has included several young players in the squad resting the likes of forwards Akram Afif and Almoez Ali, with goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham set to miss action after undergoing a surgery in London last week.
“We introduce young talent as part of our policy to form a strong squad that has a mix of youth and experienced players as we are facing a major challenge in the qualifiers,” Lopez had ahead of double-header against Kuwait in March.
Qatar’s match against India on June 11 at Doha’s Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium will wrap their campaign in the second round of the joint qualifiers from which 18 teams will advance to the third round of World Cup qualifiers. The teams progressing from the second round will be divided in three groups of six teams through a draw. The winners and runners-up from the third round groups will be earning direct qualification for the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Coach Marquez Lopez.
Qatar squad for the two games includes Amir Hassan, Ali Nader, Saad Al Sheeb, Shehab Al Laithi, Abdullah Al Ahrak, Abdullah Al Yazidi, Abdullah Youseff, Ahmed Al Janahi, Ahmed Fathy, Ahmed Al Rawi, Al Hashaemi Al Hussein, Fares Saeed, Homam Al Amin, Hazem Ahmed, Ibrahim Al Hassa, Jassim Al Sharsani, Khaled Ali, Mahdi Maged Al Moajaba, Mohamed Ayash, Mohamed Khaled, Mustafa Tariq, Nabeel Irfan, Naif Al Hadhrami, Tahseen Mohamed, Tamim Mansour, Youseff Abdulrazzaqm Youseff Ayman, Youseff Mohamed and Youseff Ziad.
