Qatar’s head coach is not pushing the panic button yet and is confident that Al Annabi will get back on track against DPR Korea.

Qatar were stung by their opening-day defeat against the United Arab Emirates last week but head coach Bartolome ‘Tintin’ Marquez Lopez said he is confident in his side’s ability to come back and qualify directly for the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Al Annabi will play North Korea at the National Stadium in Laos on Tuesday, seeking to undo the damage of the 3-1 loss at home in their first match of the AFC Asian Qualifiers.

While Qatar are the favourites against a North Korean side that they convincingly beat 6-0 en route to the Asian Cup triumph in 2019, the unexpected loss against the UAE last Thursday has made things tricky.

“I’m confident that we can bounce back from this,” Marquez Lopez said on Monday.

“The chances in the group are still there,” he went on to say. “We have nine matches left in the qualifiers and everything can change in calculations and chances to qualify.”

Marquez Lopez, however, added a word of caution, acknowledging North Korea’s performance in their 1-0 loss against Uzbekistan on Thursday.

“I watched their first match. They played beautiful football and the game will not be easy for either side,” he added.

“Excessive confidence is bad,” the 62-year-old Spaniard had warned, adding it would be foolish to fancy their chances based only on previous results.

Expectations on the Qataris will be to get all three points to leave the upset behind and justify the odds that put them as favourites to qualify out of a group that also consists of top seed Iran.

“We have moved on from the UAE match,” said Yusuf Abdurisag, the team’s wide attacker who was on the bench last Wednesday. “Our goal is to win, like every other team.”

Both Qatar and North Korea are pointless in a group that saw Iran, UAE, and Uzbekistan secure wins last week.

Qatar’s squad gains depth with the inclusion of centre forward Ahmed Al-Rawi and newly naturalised playmaker Edmilson Junior, who may contribute if the team needs extra attacking options.

It is a simple equation for Qatar: anything other than a win will make the road ahead harder. The plan against North Korea, hence, will be to get more of Akram Afif and Almoez Ali on the ball, who were dealt with comfortably for the most part by the Emiratis.

Afif’s incisiveness and instinctive connection with Ali were on display on only one occasion, as the duo combined to provide for Ibrahim Al-Hassan’s goal, despite the isolation all night.

Getting them more involved will be the key to unlocking Sin Yong Nam’s North Korean defence which has come confident with its performance against Uzbekistan.

“Qatar are a strong team and the current Asian champions, they are well trained,” the former North Korean player-turned-coach said ahead of the clash.

Despite qualifying for the World Cup in 2010 as the lowest-ranked nation, North Korea’s qualifying campaigns ever since have not been as successful ever since.

The Chollima withdrew from the qualifiers for the Qatar World Cup midway into the campaign amidst fears of a COVID-19 breakout and only announced their return to the international arena one year ago.

A home game against Asian champions without their home support will be a disadvantage for Yong Nam, but he says the side might have a chance after the experience against Uzbekistan.

“In football, anything can happen so we will try to get a good result,” he added.