Qatar coach confident ahead of ‘crucial’ tie against Kyrgyzstan

Coach Luis Garcia seeks another three points when Qatar face Kyrgyzstan for their AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to 26 Group A tie on Tuesday.
Last Thursday, Qatar crushed North Korea 5-1 in their 2026 FIFA World Cup clash at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha.
Influential Akram Afif played a captain’s role as the victory took Qatar level on 10 points with the UAE, nine behind leaders Iran and six adrift of Uzbekistan, with only the top two teams to qualify automatically for next year’s global showpiece.
The crushing defeat four days ago for North Korea left them rooted at the bottom with two points.
“Yes, we are absolutely prepared for match against the Kyrgyz national team,” Coach Luis Garcia began, addressing the press conference, said on Monday.
“We are fully focused and our aim is clear: to return with a positive result. We know this is a crucial match for us in the eighth round of the first group competition for the third round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, and we are determined to perform at our best,” he added.
“We understand the challenge ahead, facing the Kyrgyz team on their home ground with their fans. It won’t be easy, but we have completed our preparations and the players are well aware of the importance of this game. They know what’s at stake in our journey to qualify for the World Cup finals, and the three points are incredibly important to us,” Garcia said.
“Our goal as a national team is to showcase the level of Qatari football and to achieve the desired result. This includes improving our chances of reaching the World Cup finals. I can feel the great desire and determination in every player who will take the field tomorrow. They are all eager to achieve success and make our nation proud,” the Qatar coach said.
Qatar defender Lucas Mendez also sounded confident.
“I have full confidence in the ability of all of my teammate so that we provide the desired level and achieve a result that everyone is looking forward to,” Mendez said on Monday.
“We are going to enter the match with the goal of winning and collecting three points that will enhance the national team’s chances of reaching the World Cup finals,” he added. “The Kyrgyz national team will be a tough opponent for sure. All of my teammates understand the importance of the match, and they have full knowledge of the rival team that has previously met with the Qatari national team at this stage of the qualifiers in Doha,” Mendez said.
Mendez confirmed that the goal for them is to achieve a positive result to please the Qatari fans, adding that all members of the team have the experience and ability to handle such important matches.
Kyrgyzstan’s debut at this stage of the AFC Asian Qualifiers has been a valuable learning experience with the Central Asian side holding their own despite only having three points to their name.
Kyrgyzstan coach Maxim Lisitsyn said his team faces a tough challenge but he is confident in the Kyrgyzstan players’ abilities.
He added that his team will seek to make up for the previous 1-0 loss to Uzbekistan, noting that the reason for the loss was due to lack of experience, while the numerical disadvantage of completing the match with ten players also had an impact on their result.
Sitting seven points behind UAE and Qatar, Kyrgyzstan have to win their remaining three matches if they are to stand a chance of advancing to the playoffs, where another two tickets to the FIFA World Cup 2026 will be available.
The match will be played at Dolen Omurzakov Stadium with kick off slated for 4:45pm Qatar time.