Fans lashed out at poor refereeing in the game as Qatar defeated India 2-1 in the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying match in Doha on Tuesday. New Delhi: India’s campaign in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers ended with a shattering 2-1 defeat against Qatar at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on Tuesday, June 11. For the first time in 19 years, the Indian football team took the field without their former captain Sunil Chettri and the post-Chettri era began in familiar fashion for underfire head coach Igor Stimac as the Blue Tigers threw away another win.
India looked well on course for an unlikely win against table-toppers Qatar in their final encounter in Group A after Lallianzuala Chhangte gave them a well-deserved lead in the 37th minute. The Mizoram forward scored the first goal for Inda in the post-Chettri era which seemed enough to seal India an important win until controversy struck in the game. Youssef Aymen scored the equaliser for Qatar in controversial circumstances in the 73rd minute to put his team on level terms.
However, the goal should have been ruled as the ball had clearly gone out of play before being slotted back into the net. It started after Indian skipper and goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu saved a header from Yousef Aymen and the ball slipped through his legs to roll out of play. However, Qatari forward Al Hassan pulled the ball from behind the line and squared it to Aymen, who pushed it into the back of the net as the Indian defenders were gearing .
