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The Indian football team is riding on a wave of confidence following their 1-0 victory over Kuwait in the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026 and 2027 AFC Asian Cup Qualifier match away from home, but face a massive challenge on home soil on Tuesday. The Igor Stimac-coached Blue Tigers are up against Asian champions Qatar, whom they face in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday. India had held the Qataris to a heroic draw in September 2019 in a game that witnessed goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu make multiple acrobatic saves, and they will be seeking inspiration from that game as they head into the contest at the Kalinga Stadium. Speaking to reporters ahead of the match, Stimac described the upcoming clash as something of a no-contest and that his team ha “nothing to lose” heading into the match. “We are very realistic, we know that Qatar is out of our league. But we also know that this is football, the most beautiful game in the world which provides opportunities and this is our opportunity.” “We all know their strength and what they are capable of and in what way they destroyed Afghanistan a few days back,” said Stimac, referring to Qatar’s 8-1 win over Afghanistan in their earlier match on 16 November. “It’s a game like any other, that is what my players need to accept and prepare for. What we can do is give our best. “This is a game where there is nothing to lose for us and a hell of a lot to gain for. So, let’s go for it.” Lineups: India: Amrinder Singh (GK); Nikhil Poojary, Rahul Bheke, Sandesh Jhingan, Subhasish Bose; Suresh Singh, Apuia Ralte, Anirudh Thapa; Udanta Singh, Sunil Chhetri, Lallianzuala Chhangte Qatar: Meshaal Barsham (GK); Pedro Miguel, Lucas Mendes, Boualem Khoukhi, Homam Ahmed; Ahmed Fatehi, Mostafa Meshaal, Hassan Al-Haydos; Akram Afif, Almoez Ali, Tameem Al-Abdullah
India vs Qatar, FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC Qualifier Highlights: FT IND 0-3 QAT: Asian champions Qatar outclass India
India vs Qatar, FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC Qualifier Highlights: FT IND 0-3 QAT; Mostafa Meshaal, Almoez Ali and Yusuf Abdurisag score for Qatar as India suffer a 0-3 defeat at Bhubaneshwar’s Kalinga Stadium following their away victory over Kuwait.
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India vs Qatar LIVE
FT: India 0-3 Qatar
That brings us to the end of our coverage of the FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC Qualifying match between India and Qatar in Bhubaneswar, with the Blue Tigers suffering a 0-3 defeat against the Asian champions. On behalf of my colleagues at Firstpost, this is Amit signing off, bidding you all a good night!
India vs Qatar LIVE
FT: India 0-3 Qatar
90+4’: FULL TIME AT THE KALINGA STADIUM and it’s all smiles between the two sides right now. India coach Igor Stimac and his Qatar counterpart Carlos Queiroz shake hands as do the players, with the Blue Tigers acknowledging the fact that they got outplayed by a better side — the Asian champions at that — tonight!
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-3 Qatar
90+3’: Collision between Rahul KP and Pandita in the Qatari box just when the former was attempting to beat opposition custodian Barsham, as a result of which the ball rolls away wide of the goalpost. Couple of more changes from both teams, with Al Rawi replacing Pedros Miguel for Qatar and India bringing in Lalchungnunga for Jhinga.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-3 Qatar
90’: Four minutes added to the clock after it hits the 90-minute mark. Can the Blue Tigers find at least one goal to give their fans something to smile about.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-3 Qatar
86’: GOAL! Qatar score a third and that should put the result beyond any doubt now! Yousuf Abdurisag heads the ball into the top left corner following a cross from the left wank from Waad, and there’s little Indian custodian Amrinder can do to thwart that one. Eerie silence around the Kalinga Stadium now, and it’s not too long ago that they had been singing ‘Vande Mataram’, and cheering the Blue Tigers on with “India! India” chants!
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
83’: More fresh legs for the Indians with Rahul Praveen and Ishan Pandita replacing Sunil Chhetri and Lallianzuala Chhangte. Coach Igor Stimac will be hoping they’re able to halve the deficit at least if the prospect of registering a home victory over the Asian champions appears a little out of reach at the moment.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
80’: Another 10 minutes left in regulation time and the Qataris appear relaxed at the moment. Manager Carlos Queiroz brings in Mohammed Waad in place of Hassan Al-Haydos.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
72’: Excellent sliding tackle by Subhashish Bose to steal possession just when Qatar were preparing to launch a fresh attack. India have played well in patches even if the scoreline says otherwise.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
65’: Sahal nearly makes an impact after being brought on at the hour mark! Excellent work by Suresh as his pass clears a few Qatari defenders before finding the Mohun Bagan midfielder, whose left-footed strike that was aimed for the bottom left corner goes wide.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
69’: More changes made by the Qataris, the two goal scorers Almoez Ali and Mostafa Meshaal getting replaced by Mohammed Muntari and Jassem Gaber Abdulsallam.
DID YOU KNOW: Muntari was Qatar’s only goal-scorer in last year’s FIFA World Cup that they had hosted, scoring against Senegal.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
63’: First change for the Blue Tigers as Sahal Abdul Samad replaces Anirudh Thapa. India also get their first corner around this time, with Qatar having collected 10 of them so far, although nothing comes off it.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
60’: We’ve reached the hour mark in the clash, with India have made a few spirited moves into the Qatari box but without being able to finish things off in clinical fashion. Qatar, meanwhile, have made one change so far, with Tameem Al Abdullah making way for Yousuf Abdurisag.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
54’: Thapa moves down the right wing with Chhetri and Chhangte also pushing towards the Qatari third. Thapa puts in a cross to the centre, only for it to get cleared by Khoukhi.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-2 Qatar
46’: GOAL! Qatar double their lead almost right away after action resumes at the Kalinga Stadium as the crowd goes silent for a second time tonight! Khoukhi feeds the ball to Afif, whose shot is stopped by Amrinder. Ali then charges in and puts in a slide to complete the goal.
India vs Qatar LIVE
HT: India 0-1 Qatar
45+2’: HALF TIME at the Kalinga Stadium with Qatar leading India by a solitary goal thanks to Mustafa Meshaal’s fourth minute strike! The Blue Tigers, however, have looked quite impressive, especially in the last 15 minutes of the first half where they managed to create multiple chances with Apuia and Thapa nearly finding the net.
Should be a riveting second half the way things are progressing at the moment.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
42’: And now Thapa misses out on a close chance! Chhetri steals the ball from one of the Qatari defenders close to the and feeds the ball to the Mohun Bagan midfielder, whose shot ends up being off target, narrowly missing the right post. The Blue Tigers looked clueless in the first few minutes but have created multiple chances since, especially in the dying minutes of the first half.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
35’: Apuia Ralte nearly scores for the Blue Tigers! Thapa feeds the ball to the Mumbai City midfielder, who ends up firing it wide of the post and towards the stands.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
31’: Meshaal nearly doubles Qatar’s lead! The players crowd at the Indian third and the Al-Sadd midfielder attempts to fire the ball down the goalkeeper’s left to towards the corner of the post. This time, an alert Amrinder leaps to his left in time thwart his effort.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
26’: Chhangte does well to steal possession in the 26th minute mark, but the Indians aren’t able to hold on to possession for long. The ball soon comes to Afif’s feet and the forward charges towards the Indian goal and attempts a chip that ultimately goes over the net.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
16’: Yellow for Indian defender Sandesh Jhingan, the first booking of the match! He gets into the referee’s book for elbowing Boualem Khoukhi.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
12’: The Indians respond now. Lallianzuala Chhangte charges down the left flank, but is intercepted well short of the Qatari third. He receives an excellent through ball a couple of minutes later, but this time is halted by Boualem Khoukhi.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
8’: Almoez Ali charges towards the Indian box raising fears of a second strike within the first quarter of an hour. Rahul Bheke, however intercepts his cross into the box. A couple of minutes later, it’s ace defender Sandesh Jhingan who halts Akram Afif’s charge.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-1 Qatar
4’: GOAL! Qatar had missed out on an early chance in the second minute but Mustafa Meshaal puts the side ahead just two minutes later as India fail to clear the ball after conceding a corner. Meshaal quietly fires it to the left of Indian custodian Amrinder, who’s reduced to a mere spectator.
India vs Qatar LIVE
India 0-0 Qatar
1’: And we’re off at the Kalinga Stadium, with the match kickstarting to action!
India vs Qatar LIVE
The two sides walk out to the centre at a packed Kalinga Stadium to sing their respective national anthems. What’s more, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who currently serves as FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, is also in attendance, as are Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik and AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey.
India vs Qatar LIVE
Qatar starting XI: Meshaal Barsham (GK); Pedro Miguel, Lucas Mendes, Boualem Khoukhi, Homam Ahmed; Ahmed Fatehi, Mostafa Meshaal, Hassan Al-Haydos; Akram Afif, Almoez Ali, Tameem Al-Abdullah
The lineups are out. Here’s what the Indian starting XI looks like for today’s contest
India vs Qatar LIVE
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifying match between India and Qatar at Bhubaneswar’s Kalinga Stadium on Tuesday. The upcoming contest is a bit of a mismatch if their positions on the FIFA world rankings is to be taken into consideration. India, however, are high on confidence after beating Kuwait away from home, and will also seek inspiration from the 0-0 draw against the Asian Champions back in September 2019.