Doha, March 19 (QNA) - North Korea’s football coach Sin Yong-Nam affirmed his team’s readiness to face host Qatar at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in the seventh round of Group A matches for the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, to be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, the coach stated that his team has prepared well and are ready to face the Qatari team, whom they previously faced in the first-leg match that ended in a draw.

The North Korean coach expressed his desire to achieve a satisfactory result against Qatar, adding that they know the opponent's style and have made some changes to achieve the result they have planned for.

Regarding his team's goal for the upcoming match, the coach clarified that every team aims to win, and they are determined to do so, stating that after six rounds, they have two points, and with four matches remaining, adding that they must approach the game with great desire to achieve the needed outcome.

The coach reiterated that his team’s chances remain alive despite only having two points, as anything is possible in the remaining four matches.

He emphasized the team's efforts to increase their points tally to maintain hopes of advancing to the fourth stage of the qualifiers.

North Korea aims to secure a victory to keep their hopes of qualifying for the Asian playoffs alive after losing the chance to secure one of the top two spots in the group.

The eighth round of Group A matches will be held next Tuesday, featuring Qatar playing against Kyrgyzstan in Bishkek, Iran hosting Uzbekistan in Tehran, and North Korea facing the UAE in Riyadh. (QNA)