India VS Qatar: India Robbed Of Their World Cup Dream Against Qatar

India was looking in a strong position until Qatar scored a controversial goal that drew them level. From a set-piece, Qatar played a cross into the box that was headed on goal but was saved by Gurpreet Singh Sandhu. The ball was clearly out of play, and Indian players stopped playing as it should have been a corner, but the ball was dragged back into the play and passed in the back of the net by Qatar's Yousef Aymen.

Indian players were furious about the decision, but nothing changed, and the game continued. In the 85th minute, Qatar scored again when Ahmed-Al-Rawi scored a beautiful goal from outside the box to make it 2-1 for Qatar. Kuwait became the second team to qualify for the 3rd Round of AFC Qualifiers as they managed to get all three points against Afghanistan.

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India finished third in Group A, which not only ended their dream of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, but it also stripped them of directly qualifying for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. Igor Stimac, the coach of the Indian football team, also finds himself in a very tricky situation, as his future is very uncertain. 

Only the future will tell whether the All India Football Federation (AIFF) will appeal against this decision or not. It is a harsh reality that the Indian football players and the fans have to accept that the dream of seeing India qualify for the 2026 World Cup is gone and in such a terrible fashion at that.