Qatar national football team. (Photo : Getty Images)
Group C's top team Qatar (4-0-0, 12 points) will host struggling squad Maldives (1-3-0, 3 points) at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on October 13 as they look to extend their winning streak to five games in the AFC 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
Qatar stunned tournament favorite China, 1-0, in their Thursday match at the Maroon's home turf in Doha, as reported by Yahoo Sports.
Midfielder Karim Boudiaf provided the lone goal for José Daniel Carreño's squad at the 22nd minute before they held off persistent Chinese attacks the whole game and escape with the much-needed victory.
With the win, Al-Annabi was able to separate themselves from the pack as China and Hong Kong is now tied at second place in the group with 7 points.
Meanwhile, Maldives has only pulled off one win so far in the tourney with their last match a close 4-3 win over lowly Bhutan, via the FIFA official website.
Forward Ali Ashfaq unleashed a hat trick while striker Ahmed Nashid opened the scoring at the 11th minute to lead the Red Snappers over the Dragon Boys at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu last Thursday.
The Maroons was able to pull off a 1-0 escape in their first encounter with Maldives at the National Football Stadium in Malé last June 11. They look to improve their performance playing at home in this second round of competitions.
The prediction is Qatar over Maldives, 2-0.
Qatar starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Lecomte; Musa, Hassan, Kasola, Yasser; Assadalla, Khouki, Boudiaf, Abdullah; Haidos, Muntari
Maldives starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Imran; Abdulla, Mohamed, Amdhan Ali, Ghanee; Arif, Ashad Ali, Ahmed, Umair; Imaz, Nashid
