Qatar take on the visitors North Korea in the round 7 match of the Third Stage of World Cup Qualification in Asia. The match will be played on Thursday, March 20th at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium (Doha).
The Asian Cup Champion struggles to qualify for the World Cup on their own. The Maroons have gone through a coaching carousel and only settled on their current head coach, Bartolomeu "Tintin" Marques, last fall. Under him, they suffered a heavy 0-5 defeat against the UAE in their last qualification match. Before that, they narrowly edged Uzbekistan 3-2 with a late winner, lost 1-4 to Iran, but managed a solid 3-1 victory over Kyrgyzstan. The team aims to play a technical and fast-paced style, pushing high up the pitch, but that often leaves them exposed defensively. In the first meeting against North Korea, they played out a 2-2 draw in Laos, despite having a numerical advantage and leading for most of the game—dropping points unnecessarily. Currently sitting fourth in Group A, the Maroons must secure a home victory in Doha against the group's clear underdog to stay in contention for a top-two finish. Given their strength at home, anything less than three points would be a major setback.
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After years of bans and isolation, North Korea is back on the international stage, though they are forced to play home matches in Laos—and not very successfully. Through six rounds, they have collected just two points and remain at the bottom of the group. A lack of match practice has clearly hurt them, as their squad consists mainly of domestic-based players with little international exposure. Still, they have managed some surprising results, including a narrow 0-1 loss to Uzbekistan and a shock 1-1 draw against the UAE away from home. However, those were followed by three straight defeats—2-3 against Iran and a disappointing 0-1 loss to Kyrgyzstan—leaving Yong Nam Sin’s side in last place in Group A. In February, the team held a two-week training camp in Turkey, where they played several friendlies in preparation for the crucial final qualification rounds. Their results were promising: a 4-1 loss to Rubin Kazan, a 1-1 draw with Jordan, a 2-0 win over Kazakhstan, and another 1-1 draw against Baltika. These performances showed some improvement, but translating that to competitive matches remains a challenge.
Qatar is a far more cohesive and structured team that, inspired by their Catalan-Spanish football philosophy, thrives on possession and aggressive pressing. In the first match in Vientiane, they were unlucky not to take all three points (2-2) against an opponent that prefers to sit deep and play reactively. At home, where they have already beaten a strong Uzbekistan side in this qualification campaign, they should comfortably dominate. North Korea lacks the quality to withstand Qatar’s speed, experience, and tactical fluidity. Expect the Maroons to secure a convincing victory.
Prediction for the match: Qatar to win.
