Qatar defeats India at the World Cup 2022 qualifiers, snatching a 1-0 victory.
Qatar’s national football team cemented its dominance over Group E of the Asian Qualifiers after securing a 1-0 victory against India in the joint FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 qualifiers on Thursday.
Although the reigning AFC Asian Cup titleholders automatically qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2022 as the host nation, Qatar remains a favourite to win Group E, which will seal their place in the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 Finals.
🎙 Highlights from the pre-match press conference for our 🇶🇦 national team ahead of Thursday’s clash with India in the joint qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023 #Qatar #AsianQualifiers pic.twitter.com/qpwtskMqZa
— Qatar Football (@QFA_EN) June 2, 2021
Qatar Football Association said “Sanchez has named a strong 27-player squad for the Asian Qualifiers, with the likes of 2019 AFC Asian Cup top-scorer Almoez Ali, Akram Afif and Hasan Alhaydos powering Qatar.”
Abdulaziz Hatem put Qatar ahead just 33 minutes into the game with shot into the back of the net.
In the first-leg match, India held reigning Asian Champions Qatar to a 0-0 draw, a result considered as historic for the Asian team.
“Qatar is currently on top of the Group E rankings with 16 points from six games, compared to 12 points from five matches for Oman, 4 for Afghanistan, 3 for India and one point for Bangladesh,” QFA stated.
India’s football coach Igor Stimac said earlier on Wednesday that holding Qatar to a goalless draw in the first-leg of the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers was a “big surprise” and Thursday’s match against the “best team in Asia” will be extremely difficult.
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