Lopez names Qatar squad for Kuwait double header

Head coach Marquez Lopez announced the 25-man Qatar squad that will face Kuwait twice this month in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 joint qualifiers.
It’s Lopez’s first squad after being confirmed as coach until 2026. The Spaniard had led Qatar to second successive Asian Cup title at home last month.
Al Shamal defender Mahdi al-Muajba and Al Ahli defender Mohamed Ayyash are the new faces in the squad, while Khoukhi Boualem has been left out.
The squad will also miss the services of Hassan al-Haydos, who retired on Saturday after appearing in a record 183 matches for Qatar.
The first match against Kuwait is on March 21 at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, with Qatar travelling to Kuwait for reverse fixture, which is scheduled to be held on March 26.
Qatar have taken an early grip on Group A with wins over India (3-0) and Afghanistan (8-1). Kuwait and India are tied on three points while Afghanistan lost both their matches and need to get on the winning trail if they are to remain in the race.
Having successfully defended their AFC Asian Cup title, Qatar will be confident of navigating through their remaining matches.
The nine group winners and the respective runners-up will advance to the third round of FIFA World Cup qualifiers, 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.
Squad
Goalkeeper: Meshaal Barsham (Al Sadd), Salah Zakaria (Al Duhail), Saud al-Khater (Al Wakrah)
Defenders: Al Mahdi Ali and Lucas Mendez (Al Wakrah), Tariq Salman (Al Sadd), Hommam al-Amin (Al Gharafa), Bassam al-Rawi (Al Rayyan), Sultan al-Breik (Al Duhail), Mohamed Ayyash (Al Ahli).
Midfielders: Ahmed Fathi, Jassim Jaber, Abdullah al-Maarafi (Al Arabi), Abdulaziz Hatem (Al Rayyan), Mohamed Waad and Mustafa Meshaal (Al Sadd), Mahdi al-Muajba (Al Shamal), Abdullah Abdulsalam al-Ahraq (Qatar SC).
Forwards: Ahmed al-Janhi and Ahmed Alaa (Al Gharafa), Akram Afif and Youssef Abdul Razzaq (Al Sadd), Almoez Ali (Al Duhail), Ahmed al-Rawi (Al Rayyan) Ismail Mohamed (Al Duhail).U-23 squad for friendlies Qatar under-23 head coach Ilidio Vale on Monday also named 28-player squad for four upcoming friendly games ahead of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024, which is starting next month.
The squad will meet Uzbekistan twice on March 23 and 26 before taking on their China counterparts on March 31. They will also play against Malaysia on April 7, wrapping up their preparations for the U-23 Asian Cup to be played in Qatar from April 15 to May 3.
Hosts Qatar are in Group A of the 16-team continental event along with Australia, Jordan and Indonesia.
U-23 SquadAli Nader, Amir Hassan, Youssef Abdullah (goalkeepers), Abdullah al-Ali, Abdullah al-Yazidi, Abdulaziz Mohamed, Abdulla Youssef, Ahmed al-Saeed, Ahmed Riyadh, Ayaub al-Ouwi, Eissa Al Nagar, Faisal Mohamed, Fares Saeed, Hassan al-Ghareeb, Hashemi al-Hussain, Jassem al-Sharshani, Khaled Ali, Latif Majer, Mostafa al-Sayed, Mohamed Jouda, Mohamed Khaled, Mohamed Mannai, Mubarak Shannan, Naif al-Hadrami, Nabil Erfan, Saif Al Din Hassan, Tameem Mansour, Youssef Ali.