FIFA 2026 qualifiers: India suffer 0-3 defeat to fancied Qatar
Bhubaneswar, Nov 21: India dished out a gritty display but suffered a 0-3 drubbing against dominant Asian champions Qatar in their second match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup second round qualifiers here on Tuesday.
Qatar would have won by a bigger margin had they not missed several chances while dominating throughout the 90 minutes at the Kalinga Stadium.
The visiting side scored through Moustafa Tarek Mashal (4th minute), Almeoz Ali (47th) and Yusuf Adurisag (86th).
India, who were seeking inspiration from their famous 0-0 draw against the same opponents four years ago, could barely create scoring chances. They did get a couple of opportunities at the fag end of the first half, but wasted them.
Igor Stimac's team is still in contention to finish second in Group A and qualify for the third round for the first time after a 1-0 win over Kuwait in their away match on November 16.
The Indian defence was exposed quite early into the match as they conceded a goal in the fourth minute itself.
Off a corner, three Qatar players exchanged passes inside the Indian box but none of the home side defenders could touch the ball. Moustafa Tarek Mashal then sent a low right-footed shot which beat goalkeeper Amrinder Singh, who was fielded by Igor Stimac in place of Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, all ends up.
Akram Afif missed three chances which allowed India to go into the breather just one goal down.
Afif failed to hit the target in the second minute with just the Indian goalkeeper in front of the post. He also failed to find the target in the 14th, 22nd and 26th minutes.
First goal scorer Mashal's free header was saved by Amrinder.
Their backs to the wall, India tried to hit on the counter and they got two fine chances, and could have restored parity from the second one.
Then, Udanta Singh and Anirudh Thapa had a nice one-touch neat exchange of passes but Lalengmawia Ralte failed to direct his shot properly from the edge of the box.
Three minutes from the break, Thapa wasted an easier chance as he had only the Qatar goalkeeper Meshaal Barsham to beat after the ball landed on him following a defensive mistake. But Thapa somehow could only produce a weak low shot which missed the post by a wide margin.
If the fag end of the first half saw some fightback from India, Qatar nipped it in the bud by doubling the lead in the second minute of the second half (47th minute of the match) with their prolific striker Almeoz Ali finding the target.
Ali had scored four goals in Qatar's 8-1 hammering of Afghanistan in their previous match.
Thapa was taken off in the 63rd minute and Sahal Abdul Samad came in his place. Just two minutes later, Suresh Singh found him inside the Qatar box with a brilliant delivery but Samad's left-footed shot was wide of the far post.
Four minutes from regulation time, Qatar made it 3-0 (86th minute) with Yusuf Adurisag heading home after connecting a cross from Mohammed Albayati.
India next play their 2026 World Cup qualifiers match against Afghanistan at the neutral venue of Dushanbe, Tajikistan on March 21 next year.
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Florida woman arrested for allegedly selling human bones via Facebook marketplace
New Delhi: A 52-year-old woman from Florida, Kymberlee Schopper, has been arrested for allegedly trading in human bones including skull fragments and ribs through Facebook Marketplace. Authorities said the sales were conducted through her Orange City-based business, ‘Wicked Wonderland’.
Schopper was taken into custody on April 11 and later released on a $7,500 bond from Volusia County Jail. The arrest followed a months-long investigation initiated on December 21, 2023, when Orange City Police received a tip-off about the alleged sale of human remains through a business’s Facebook page.
Police reviewed images shared by the informant, which appeared to show listings of human bones on social media. The business was identified as ‘Wicked Wonderland’, located on North Volusia Avenue. A subsequent review of its website revealed several items for sale, including skull fragments, a clavicle, scapula, rib, vertebra, and a partial skull.
Law enforcement officials visited the store and collected the remains, which were later sent to the medical examiner’s office for analysis. During questioning, one of the business owners confirmed that human bones had been sold for years and stated they were purchased from private sellers. While the owner claimed to have documentation for the transactions, it was not produced at the time.
According to the arrest affidavit cited by FOX 35 Orlando, Schopper described the remains as authentic and delicate. She reportedly believed they were legal to sell under state law, categorizing them as educational models.
However, experts examining the recovered items concluded that some remains could be archaeological in nature. One skull fragment was estimated to be over 100 years old, while another bone appeared to be more than 500 years old. Schopper now faces charges related to the illegal sale and purchase of human tissue under Florida law.
