AL-AHSA, SAUDI ARABIA: In a first, Pakistan will today take on Saudi Arabia in the second round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers for the first time in its footballing history.
The historic game will be played at the Al-Fateh Stadium at 7:30 pm local time.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia last played against each other in 1978 at the latter’s home which the Green Shirts were humiliated 6-0.
Jordan and Tajikistan are the other teams in Pakistan’s group.
36 Asian teams across 9 groups for 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 AFC Asian Cup joint qualifiers Round Two. Al-Fateh Stadium in Al-Ahsa to see Saudi Arabia host Pakistan in Group G opener tonight 9:30pm PST. #WeAre26 #KSAvPAK #PakistanFootballhttps://t.co/RZ300MUMwD
— FootballPakistan.com (@FootballPak) November 16, 2023
These four teams will play against each other home and away, the top two nations will progress to the third round while the last two teams qualify for the third round of the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers.
Being a host country of the 2027 Asian Cup, Saudi Arabia have already qualified for the continent’s major showpiece event.
Pakistan squad:
Goalkeepers: Yousuf Butt, Salman-Ul-Haq, Hassan Ali
Defenders: Abdullah Iqbal, Haseeb Khan, Mamoon Moosa Khan, Mohibullah, Muhammad Sohail, Muhammad Saddam, Junaid Shah, Rao Umar Hayat, Muhammad Hamza Munir
Midfielders: Rahis Nabi, Alamgir Ghazi, Rajab Ali, Ali Uzair, Imran Kiyani, Harun Hamid
Forwards: Shayak Dost, Otis Khan, Fareed Ullah, Abdul Samad Arshad, Muhammad Waleed Khan, Adeel Younas
Officials: Stephen Constantine (head coach), Rogerio Ramos (goalkeeper coach), Claudio Altieri (performance coach), Muhammad Ali Khan (manager), Azam Khan (doctor), Muhammad Abdullah (physio), Haider Ali (media), Abdul Qayyum (masseur).
