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An action-packed double-header in the AFC Asian Qualifiers saw 36 nations take to the field as some of the continent’s biggest stars turned on the style for their countries.
Four games into the Preliminary Joint Qualifiers – Round 2 for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 and with just two remaining, it was a decisive pair of matchdays in some groups while there remains plenty to play for in others.
AFC Media looks back on some of the stats and facts that caught the eye.
Safe passage
Six nations have booked their tickets to Saudi Arabia 2027 and the next phase of FIFA World Cup qualifying after picking up sufficient points to advance with two games to spare.
Defending AFC Asian Cup champions Qatar, along with Australia, Iran, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan all claimed back-to-back wins to seal their progress.
First wins
Four countries secured their first victories in the second round of qualifying with Indonesia, Jordan and Palestine all collecting six points from six to boost their hopes of progressing.
Perhaps most impressive, however, were Afghanistan, who followed up a scoreless draw with India on Matchday Three by claiming a 2-1 come-from-behind win in Guwahati to move off the bottom of Group A.
Chhetri doing Chhetri things
While it was a disappointing pair of results for India against the Afghans, their evergreen captain Sunil Chhetri’s incredible record for his country continued as he netted his 94th international goal on what was his 150th appearance.
Making the milestone all the more remarkable, Chhetri has become the first player ever to score in his 1st, 25th, 50th, 75th, 100th, 125th and 150th appearances for his country as the Indian icon edges towards a century of goals for the Blue Tigers.
Hattrick heroes
There were plenty of goals across the two matchdays and four players registered hattricks along the way as Syria’s Omar Khrbin (vs Myanmar), Palestine’s Oday Dabbagh (vs Bangladesh), Kyrgyz Republic’s Joel Kojo (vs Chinese Taipei) and Jordan’s Mousa Al Taamari (vs Pakistan) all scored trebles.
Kojo’s first-half 28-minute hattrick was the quickest of the lot, while Al Taamari bagged a brace in the first of his two games against Pakistan in Islamabad before following it up with three more goals in Amman.
Leading the way
Those five goals moved Al Taamari up to joint-second in the scoring charts alongside China’s Wu Lei (who netted successive doubles against Singapore), South Korea’s Son Heung-min (who scored a goal in each game against Thailand) and Japan’s Ayase Ueda.
The quartet sit two goals behind Qatar’s Almoez Ali, who bagged a quickfire brace in a 2-1 win over Kuwait to take his tally to seven goals as the AFC Asian Cup holders secured their place in Saudi Arabia.
Staying perfect
Five teams have maintained their perfect record after the double-headers, with Qatar (vs Kuwait), Iraq (vs Philippines), Australia (vs Lebanon) and the UAE (vs Yemen) all picking up back-to-back victories to make it four wins from four.
Japan, meanwhile, edged North Korea 1-0 in Tokyo on Matchday Three to make it three wins from three before the return meeting did not take place as scheduled due to unforeseen circumstances.
Successive shutouts
Indonesia’s 1-0 and 3-0 wins over regional rivals Vietnam propelled Shin Tae-yong’s side into second place in Group A. The Garuda – along with Australia, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Oman, Palestine and Uzbekistan – were the nine teams who kept back-to-back clean sheets.
Australia, who won 2-0 and 5-0 against Lebanon, have still not conceded after four games, with Japan (after three matches) the only other side boasting a defence that has yet to be breached.
Bumper crowds
There were some big turnouts across Matchdays Three and Four, with the 64,912 at Seoul World Cup Stadium for South Korea’s 1-1 draw with Thailand the highest attendance of the qualification campaign to date. At the Japan National Stadium, meanwhile, 59,354 were present for the hosts’ 1-0 victory against North Korea.
Group F drew huge numbers on Matchday Three as 63,750 saw Iraq’s 1-0 win over the Philippines at Basra International Stadium while 57,696 witnessed Indonesia’s win by the same scoreline over Vietnam at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.
