Arnold's half-time pep talk does the trick for Australia

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Arnold's half-time pep talk does the trick for Australia

Canberra: Graham Arnold's half-time pep talk galvanised Australia to a 5-0 win over Lebanon in their FIFA World Cup 2026 and the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ Group I clash on Tuesday. 

Despite getting off to a fast start with Kusini Yengi giving them a second minute lead, Australia struggled to put away their chances for the remainder of the first half. 
 
Arnold's intervention at half-time sparked the reaction the head coach wanted, with an own goal doubling their lead two minutes into the restart.
 
Craig Goodwin then struck twice in between John Iredale scoring his first goal for Australia to confirm their place in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 ticket. 

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Round 2 - MD4: Results & Reports

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Round 2 - MD4: Results & Reports

Kuala Lumpur: Matchday Four of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ concluded on Tuesday with six teams confirming early progression.

Australia, Iraq, Islamic Republic of Iran, Uzbekistan, United Arab Emirates and Qatar booked their places in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and also confirmed their tickets to the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™.
 
The nine group winners and the respective runners-up advance to the third round of FIFA World Cup qualifying, and at the same time seal their places at the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027.
 
The other 18 teams from Round 2 will proceed directly to the third and final round of AFC Asian Cup qualifying. Stay updated on all the reaction from Tuesday's matches with the-AFC.com.

Group I: Lebanon 0-5 Australia

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Group I: Lebanon 0-5 Australia

Canberra: Australia secured their place in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers and booked their berth at AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ following their emphatic 5-0 win over Lebanon in the Preliminary Joint Qualification - Round 2 Group I tie on Tuesday.

Having defeated their visitors by a 2-0 scoreline in the first meeting in Parramatta last Thursday, the home side got off to a fast start at Gio Stadium in Canberra through Kusini Yengi in the second minute of the match, before an own-goal early in the second half then doubled the advantage.
 
A man-of-the-match performance by winger Craig Goodwin was then capped by a stunning strike to make it 3-0 to the Socceroos, before substitute John Iredale and Goodwin once more found the net to wrap up the points for Graham Arnold’s men.

Group I: Bangladesh 0-1 Palestine

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Group I: Bangladesh 0-1 Palestine

Dhaka: Michael Termanini’s stoppage time strike earned Palestine a 1-0 win over Bangladesh in their Preliminary Joint Qualification – Round 2 for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ tie on Tuesday.

With Australia already sealing one of the two berths from Group I courtesy of their 5-0 win over Lebanon, the result at Bashundhara Kings Arena sees Palestine open up a five-point gap on Lebanon, who they will meet next on June 6.

Group A: Kuwait 1-2 Qatar

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Group A: Kuwait 1-2 Qatar

Kuwait City: Qatar left it late to defeat Kuwait 2-1 in Group E of the Preliminary Joint Qualification - Round 2 for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ at Sabah Al Salem Stadium on Tuesday.

The win confirmed Qatar a spot in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers and also ensured they will be at Saudi Arabia 2027 to defend their back-to-back AFC Asian Cup titles.

Group B: Syria 7-0 Myanmar

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Group B: Syria 7-0 Myanmar

Dammam:  Omar Khrbin starred with a hat-trick as Syria defeated Myanmar 7-0 in their  FIFA World Cup 2026 and the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ tie on Tuesday Group B tie on Tuesday.

The victory took Syria to seven points, two behind Japan and four ahead of DPR Korea. 

Group C: Thailand 0-3 Korea Republic

Tue, 26 Mar, 2024

Group C: Thailand 0-3 Korea Republic

Bangkok: Korea Republic moved a step closer to booking their spot in the third phase of the preliminaries of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and at the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 as Lee Jae-sung, Son Heung-min and Park Jin-seop scored in a 3-0 win over Thailand on Tuesday.

The victory at Bangkok’s Rajamangala Stadium moves the Koreans, under interim coach Hwang Sun-hong, onto 10 points from four games and means a draw in their meeting with hosts Singapore on June 6 will seal their progress from Group C.
 
The result leaves Thailand in third place in the standings, three points behind China PR following their 4-1 win over Singapore earlier in the day with the two nations due to meet on Matchday Five.

Group D: Kyrgyz Republic 5-1 Chinese Taipei

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Group D: Kyrgyz Republic 5-1 Chinese Taipei

Bishkek: A Joel Kojo hat-trick helped Kyrgyz Republic record an emphatic 5-1 home win over Chinese Taipei in Group D of the Preliminary Joint Qualification – Round 2 for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ tie on Tuesday.

The Central Asian nation had emerged 2-0 winners when the two sides met in Kaohsiung on Thursday, and they had little difficulty in collecting the three points again at home. A third win on the trot sees Kyrgyz Republic move temporarily top of Group D with nine points while Chinese Taipei remain winless and rooted to the bottom of the group.

Group E: Turkmenistan 0-1 IR Iran

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Group E: Turkmenistan 0-1 IR Iran

Ashgabat: Islamic Republic of Iran advanced to the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers and booked their place at the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ after defeating Turkmenistan 1-0 in Group E of the Preliminary Joint Qualification - Round 2 on Tuesday.

Coach Amir Ghalenoei’s men had strolled to a 5-0 victory when the two teams met at Azadi Stadium on Thursday and following Uzbekistan's win over Hong Kong, China earlier in the day, they needed just a win to confirm qualification.

Group E: Uzbekistan 3-0 Hong Kong, China

Wed, 27 Mar, 2024

Group E: Uzbekistan 3-0 Hong Kong, China

Tashkent: Uzbekistan continued their fine form in the Preliminary Joint Qualification - Round 2 for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™, defeating Hong Kong, China 3-0 on Tuesday to seal early progression.

Eldor Shomurodov’s 40th international goal gave the hosts a 1-0 lead in the 20th minute at Bunyodkor Stadium before second-half goals from substitutes Khojimat Erkinov and Oston Urunov sealed the Uzbeks' third win in four Group E games.
 
Uzbekistan's spot in the third round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Finals was confirmed following Islamic Republic of Iran's 1-0 win over Turkmenistan in the group's other tie, which also ensured they advanced.