Qatar 1 United Arab Emirates 3, this was the scoreline that lit up the AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to 2026 on Thursday in the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Doha. The intense match event again had UAE come from behind, after falling at the first half to win this crucial match as they strive for FIFA World Cup qualification.
Qatar, the two time AFC Asian Cup champions, started dominating the game from the start with Akram Afif trying to find the gaps in the Japanese defense few times in the beginning of the match. The hosts started off the scoring process in the 38th minute as Ibrahim Al Hassan dribbles past UAE’s Yahia Nader and fired a shot in to the bottom of the net.
Being a-header, they continued to assert themselves after a slow start of the second half and that paid dividend. Harib Abdalla scored the equalizer in the 68th minute and skillfully got himself space in the box to score a shot beyond Qatari goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham. UAE’s momentum kept going, and Khaled Aldhanhani put the final nail on the coffin in the 80th minute with a brilliant low shot into the top right corner.
Qatar almost got their opportunity to equalise the score, when the referee blew for a free kick for handball. But, a VAR review later reversed the decision. The UAE then completed the victory during additional time when Ali Saleh capitalised on a defensive blunder to score making it 3-1.
A win in the match helps the UAE to stay better placed in their group when it comes to world cup qualifiers.
