14 hours ago
Al Annabi arrive in Tashkent for next Asian Qualifiers clash vs Uzbekistan
The Qatar national football team arrived in Tashkent for their next FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC Asian Qualifiers Group A match against Uzbekistan, to be played on Tuesday. Al Annabi's Spanish coach Luiz Lopetegui has called up Nabil Erfan of Al Wakrah and Mohammed Ayash of Al Duhail to the squad that will face Uzbekistan. Qatar have already qualified for the playoff stage having defeated Iran 1-0 in their last match at home. Qatar have 13 points with four wins. Iran top the group with 20 points, followed by Uzbekistan (18), the UAE (14), Qatar (13), Kyrgyzstan (7), and North Korea (3). Iran and Uzbekistan have both secured automatic qualification to FIFA World Cup 2026. As many as 18 teams have qualified for the current stage that was divided into three groups, each containing six teams competing in a split league system of two home and away stages. The first and second-placed teams from each group qualify directly for the World Cup. The third and fourth-placed teams in each group advance to the fourth round, which will see the teams divided into two groups of three. The top team in each group will qualify for the World Cup, while the second-placed teams will play a continental play-off to qualify for FIFA World Cup 2026 to be stage in the US, Canada and Mexico.