North Korea vs Qatar Prediction and Betting Tips | 10th September 2024
North Korea and Qatar lock horns at the New Laos National Stadium in Vientiane, Laos on Tuesday in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Both teams are looking to pick themselves up from their opening-day loss and get some points on the board.
Ranked 110th in the world, North Korea have qualified for the World Cup finals twice in their history, debuting in 1966 and then reaching the 2010 edition. Since then, however, the side have fallen short in their aim for a third appearance.
Now in their fresh bid, the Samba of East Asia were dealt an early blow as Uzbekistan inflicted a 1-0 loss upon them earlier this week. Jaloliddin Masharipov struck the only goal of the game in the 20th minute as North Korea failed to recover from that setback in the rest of the match.
It plunged them to their second consecutive loss in official games and extended their winless run to three. They sit in fifth position in the Group A standings in the current World Cup qualifiers, with only their next rivals ranking below them.
Qatar went down to a surprise 3-1 loss to the UAE, who fought off an early deficit to net thrice in the second half. Ibrahim Al-Hassan put the reigning Asian champions in front after 38 minutes, but the Sons of Zayed responded clinically after the break.
Hareb Abdalla equalized in the 68th minute before Khaled Ibrahim turned the match around with their second of the night. Ali Saleh then put the final nail in their coffin with a third in stoppage time.
North Korea vs Qatar Head-To-Head and Key Numbers
- There have been 12 clashes between the sides in the past, with North Korea winning four times over the Maroons and losing on three occasions.
- The sides are meeting for the first time since January 2019, when Qatar crushed the Chollima in a 6-0 victory en route to winning the AFC Asian Cup.
- North Korea's last win over the Maroons came in December 2010 in a friendly game (1-0).
North Korea vs Qatar Prediction
Both teams began on a losing note and will be eager to pick up a win here, although North Korea have struggled lately, which turns the balance in Qatar's favor.
The Maroons made mincemeat of them in their last clash and will draw inspiration from the same to prevail again.
Prediction: North Korea 1-2 Qatar
North Korea vs Qatar Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Qatar to win
Tip 2 - Goals over/under 2.5: Over 2.5 goals
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: Yes