'We believed in our big dream' - Julen Lopetegui hails 'unique' achievement after Qatar qualifies for 2026 FIFA World Cup

And Lopetegui hailed the achievement by his team as a proud moment for the country, fans and players. The former Real Madrid coach did not hide his delight at getting a chance to manage a team at the World Cup for the first time ever. 

While Qatar fans were overjoyed at playing a second successive World Cup, what truly made Lopetegui-led side's achievement special was that this was the first time the Maroons qualified for the World Cup after coming through the qualifiers. 

Last edition, they had qualified for the World Cup by virtue of being the hosts. 

While there were many crtics who alluded to the fact that Qatar played the 2022 World Cup only because they were the hosts, the team have shut every critic with this achievement. And Lopetegui couldn't be prouder.

Speaking to the media after the game, he said: "Yeah. I'm very, very happy. Very proud. (It's a) Unique achievement that never happened in the history of this country.

"I always thought when you are following a big dream, there is magic that happens (to make it come true). But you have to believe (to achieve it) and until then, we didn't stop and we achieved it. 

"We are very happy and proud for the country, players and families," he added.

Going into their Group A game against UAE in the fourth-round of the Asian World Cup qualifiers, Qatar knew that they could not afford anything less than a win.

They had drawn their first game against Oman and UAE only needed a draw to make it through. But Lopetegui's side were up for the task right from the outset at the Jassim Bin Hamad stadium in Al Rayyan. 

UAE made it difficult for the Maroons though and the hosts found the breakthrough only in the second half, with centre-back Boualem Khoukhi scoring the opener in the 49th minute. Right-back Pedro Miguel added a second in the 74th minute but there were nervy moments at the death after UAE pulled one back deep in stoppage time through Adil Al-Amiri. 

However, Qatar held on to register a monumental achievement.

Qatar have now become the 24th team to qualify for the 48-team World Cup next summer. And it seems like the team will be a force to reckon with in the tournament, given their consistent performances under Lopetegui. 

The Spaniard has brought in some tactical maturity to the Maroons as they look to make a mark in the 2026 World Cup. However, before that, Qatar will look to carry on this momentum and make a mark in the 2025 FIFA Arab Cup which starts on 1 December in Qatar.