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Kuwait stand in Qatar’s way in their bid to confirm early progression when the two sides meet in Group A of the Preliminary Joint Qualification – Round 2 for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 on Tuesday, March 26.
India, meanwhile, will hope for a better outcome when they host Afghanistan following Thursday’s draw.
Akram Afif was Qatar’s star in their 3-0 defeat of Kuwait in Thursday’s game and the two-time AFC Asian Cup champions will be hoping for more of the same in the reverse fixture.
Thursday’s victory means a win over Kuwait will confirm Qatar’s spot in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers and also book their spot in the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 with two matches to spare.
Head coach Marquez Lopez, who has yet to taste a competitive defeat since taking charge of Qatar in December, admitted he had been impressed by his team’s second half performance against Kuwait on Thursday.
“Kuwait played with a good defensive strategy but we showed our best in the second half and converted our chances. However, Tuesday’s match will be difficult as Kuwait will try to make up for this loss,” Lopez had said after Thursday’s tie.
The defeat left Kuwait on three points, one behind India, but head coach Rui Bento said his side still had a chance to secure progression.
“We still have three matches and we still have chances to qualify,” said Costa.
India, despite dominating, settled for a goalless draw with Afghanistan with head coach Igor Stimac admitting he was disappointed with the result.
“We should have won with the chances we created, we tried different combinations and players but it just did not work. This is a problem that has been following us for years,” said Stimac.
It won’t be easy against an Afghanistan side who desperately need to win to keep their hopes alive, with the draw against India delivering their first point of the campaign.
Tuesday
India v Afghanistan
Venue: Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium (Guwahati)
Kick-off: Tuesday, 19:00 (UTC+5:30)
Kuwait v Qatar
Venue: Sabah Al Salem Stadium (Kuwait City)
Kick-off: Tuesday, 22:00 (UTC+3)
