Asian Cup champions Qatar were too strong for India’s football team in their second match for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 qualification. India lost 0-3 to Qatar. Moustafa Mashal, Almoez Ali, and Yusuf Abdurisag scored Qatar’s goals. Despite opportunities, India’s Anirudh Thapa and substitute Sahal Abdul Samad missed two clear chances. India made several changes to the team that beat Kuwait in the first match of their FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier. However, Qatar still managed to take home all three points.
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Goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu’s replacement for the game, Amrinder Singh, certainly wasn’t at his best. Qatar quickly took the lead without waiting long. Akram Afif caused trouble for India. A corner delivered by him was not handled well by the Indian defense, allowing Moustafa Mashal to score.
In the 19th minute, Sandesh Jhingan’s timely block saved Amrinder from making a mistake after a wrong pass. However, Amrinder managed to stop a shot from Afif a few minutes later. Qatar was dominant, getting 10 corners in the first half while India got none. India faced many attacks from Qatar until the 40th minute but improved towards the end of the half.
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Anirudh Thapa had a good chance to score in the 42nd minute, but his shot missed the target despite beating Qatar’s goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham. India had hope for a better second half after a strong finish to the first half. However, Afif dashed those hopes with another goal, and Almoez Ali scored the second for Qatar.
India faced difficulties afterward. One positive moment came in the 65th minute when Suresh Singh made a good move but Sahal Abdul Samad missed an opportunity to score. Qatar sealed their victory with a third goal scored by substitute Yusuf Abdurisag five minutes before the match ended.
