Preview: Qatar vs. New Zealand
Qatar will be looking to pick up successive wins for the first time since November 2023 when they take on New Zealand at the Estadio Franz Horr on Monday.
The Maroons are ramping up preparations for their 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup campaign, which kicks off with a clash against Haiti at the NRG Stadium on June 25.
Qatar returned to winning ways last Thursday as they picked up a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Jamaica when the sides squared off at the Sonnenseestadion.
Homam Ahmed and Mohammed Muntari scored in an eight-minute spell to put the visitors in a commanding lead before Shamar Nicholson halved the deficit with a 61st-minute penalty.
Prior to that, the Maroons were on a run of four consecutive games without a win, claiming one draw and losing three, including a 2-1 loss to Iraq in the Gulf Cup semi-finals back in January.
However, Qatar now return home, where they have failed to win their last five matches in all competitions, losing four and picking up since last November’s 2-1 win over Panama.
Manager Carlos Queiroz will hope that last week’s victory over Jamaica can serve as a springboard for a fine run of form as his side conclude preparations for just their second-ever Gold Cup appearance.
Qatar enjoyed an impressive maiden outing at the CONCACAF tournament back in 2021, where they stormed to the semi-finals before falling to a 1-0 loss against eventual winners USA.
New Zealand were sent crashing back to earth on Friday as they suffered a 4-1 thrashing against Sweden when the sides met at the Friends Arena.
After falling behind to Callum McCowatt’s early strike, goals from Robin Quaison, Anthony Elanga and a brace from Jesper Karlsson helped the Blagult turn the game on its head.
This followed a 2-1 victory over China back in March, when a first-half own goal from Chenjie Zhu and Matthew Garbett’s 81st-minute strike helped New Zealand end their six-match winless run.
New Zealand head into Monday on a run of four consecutive away defeats across all competitions, dating back to a 5-0 win over Solomon Islands in the World Cup qualifiers back in March 2022.
Qatar friendly form:
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Qatar form (all competitions):
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New Zealand friendly form:
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New Zealand form (all competitions):
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We say: Qatar 2-1 New Zealand
Following their solid performance against Jamaica, Qatar will fancy their chances against a New Zealand side who have lost their last four away matches. We predict that the Maroons will pick up from where they dropped off on Friday and claim a narrow victory.