2026 World Cup - Asian qualifiers

[MercedesBenz240]

Scenes when Afghanistan qualifies to the next round

[amenina]

Scenes when Afghanistan qualifies to the next round

Former Premier League player Ashley Westwood (five appearances with Bradford City in 1999-2000) is their manager.

[amenina]

Group E result: Uzbekistan 3-0 Hong Kong, China

Uzbekistan are not mathematically qualified for the final round yet, but this should all be confirmed in about 30 minutes, unless Turkmenistan can come back from a 0-1 deficit to beat IR Iran.

[amenina]

Group E result: Turkmenistan 0-1 IR Iran

First group to be officially done, with IR Iran and Uzbekistan advancing to the third round, and Turkmenistan and Hong Kong, China eliminated.

Group G result: Tajikistan 1-1 Saudi Arabia

The perfect record of the Saudi Arabia came to an end, and they cannot clinch a place in the final round unless Jordan fail to beat Pakistan later tonight. So the Saudis most likely need to wait until the next matchday, where they only need an away draw against Pakistan.

[amenina]

Group F result: Vietnam 0-3 Indonesia

After two 1-0 wins, first in the Asian Cup in Qatar, and then last Thursday in Indonesia, the final act of the trilogy saw Indonesia triple the score in Vietnam, putting them on the brink of advancing to the final round. Vietnam, many people's outside bet to qualify for the World Cup, now saw their hopes almost extinguished with just 3 points and trailing Indonesia by 4.

https://twitter.com/theaseanball/status ... 8390291493

The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) terminated the contract with coach Philippe Troussier immediately after the defeat against Indonesia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers on the evening of March 26.

[Lorric]

Group F result: Vietnam 0-3 Indonesia

After two 1-0 wins, first in the Asian Cup in Qatar, and then last Thursday in Indonesia, the final act of the trilogy saw Indonesia triple the score in Vietnam, putting them on the brink of advancing to the final round. Vietnam, many people's outside bet to qualify for the World Cup, now saw their hopes almost extinguished with just 2 points and trailing Indonesia by 5.

https://twitter.com/theaseanball/status ... 8390291493

The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) terminated the contract with coach Philippe Troussier immediately after the defeat against Indonesia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers on the evening of March 26.

I don't blame them. Getting results like that, they might even fail to qualify for the Asian Cup.

[amenina]

Late results

Group A: Kuwait 1-2 Qatar
Group B: Syria 7-0 Myanmar
Group G: Jordan 7-0 Pakistan
Group H: Bahrain 3-0 Nepal, Yemen 0-3 UAE

Qatar and UAE advance to the third round, joining Australia, Iraq, IR Iran and Uzbekistan.

Pakistan and Nepal are eliminated, joining Chinese Taipei, Turkmenistan, and Hong Kong, China.

[amenina]

Matchday 4 results

Reports: https://www.the-afc.com/en/national/asi ... ports.html

Roundup: https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/tourna ... qualifying







Next matchday: 6 June 2024

Afghanistan v Qatar (Group A)
India v Kuwait (Group A)
Myanmar v Japan (Group B)
Korea DPR v Syria (Group B)
Singapore v Korea Republic (Group C)
China PR v Thailand (Group C)
Chinese Taipei v Oman (Group D)
Kyrgyz Republic v Malaysia (Group D)
Hong Kong, China v IR Iran (Group E)
Uzbekistan v Turkmenistan (Group E)
Indonesia v Iraq (Group F)
Vietnam v Philippines (Group F)
Pakistan v Saudi Arabia (Group G)
Jordan v Tajikistan (Group G)
Nepal v United Arab Emirates (Group H)
Bahrain v Yemen (Group H)
Bangladesh v Australia (Group I)
Palestine v Lebanon (Group I)

[MartinW]

Group C result: China PR 4-1 Singapore

Tied 1-1 at half-time, it was looking possibly another bad result for China, but three second half goals (even with a red card) did the job, with ex-Espanyol striker Wu Lei once again getting a brace just like last Thursday. The ultimate question is, would the two dropped points in Singapore come back to haunt the Chinese?

I watched this game in full. China took the lead in the middle of the first half but then Singapore immediately equalised within 30 seconds of the restart. Overall the game was very equal for the first hour. China were given a very soft penalty on 65' when the defender and attacker were both pushing each other while jumping for a header. The penalty was scored by Fernandinho who is now the first foreigner who changed to Chinese citizenship to score for the national team.

After a Chinese midefield player was given a red card on 79' (also a little bit harsh) Singapore thought it was their chance to attack against 10 men and get the equaliser. But they over-committed and China scored two goals on the counter-attack in the last five minutes.

For Thailand to overtake they will probably need to get a draw away at China in the next game, then beat Singapore by 3 goals in the last match assuming China lose by 1 goal to S Korea (or Thailand win by 2 if China lose by 2, etc).

[amenina]

Standings after matchday 4

[Michael S Collins]

Rather disappointing match day for a whole host of underdogs.

[amenina]

World Cup 2026 qualifying: Japan awarded forfeit 3-0 win against North Korea by Fifa

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/68699352

Japan have been awarded a 3-0 forfeit win after North Korea called off a 2026 World Cup qualifier due to be held in Pyongyang earlier in March, says Japan's Football Association.

North Korea requested the match be held at a neutral venue due to worries over infectious diseases in Japan.

The JFA said it had been informed by Fifa's disciplinary committee that the match had been forfeited.

The win means Japan go through to the third round of World Cup qualifiers.

"Although the players lost an important opportunity to play, I see this as a positive step forward," Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu said.

"Naturally, we will not be satisfied with this result, but will continue to build up our strength for the national team activities in June, the final qualifying round, and the World Cup."

Japanese health authorities reported a significant rise in strep throat infections in mid-March, with cases being diagnosed at quadruple the pace of recent years.

Fifa previously said the match - which should have taken place on Tuesday, 26 March - could not be rescheduled.

Japan beat North Korea 1-0 in Tokyo on 21 March.

[amenina]

FIFA Disciplinary Committee decision on DPR Korea v Japan

https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/tourna ... ea-v-japan

The chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has taken a decision in relation to the unplayed match between the national teams of DPR Korea v Japan initially scheduled to be played on 26 March 2024 in the frame of the preliminary competition for the FIFA World Cup 2026.

After analysing the various factual elements in light of the applicable regulations, the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has decided to declare the match lost by forfeit 3-0 by the representative team of DPR Korea.

Additionally, the DPR Korea Football Association has been ordered to pay a fine to the amount of CHF 10,000.