The Pakistan national football team was unable to depart for Dushanbe to play their final round two away fixture of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers against Tajikistan on June 11 due to technical flight issues, the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) announced on Monday.
The South Asian team previously lost 4-0 to Saudi Arabia in the first leg of the qualifiers in Al Ahsa. On June 6, Saudi Arabia defeated Pakistan again, this time 3-0 at the Jinnah Football Stadium in Islamabad, with Firas Tariq Nasser Al-Buraikan scoring twice within the first 41 minutes, giving the visitors a decisive lead.
Additionally, Pakistan suffered another setback in the qualifiers, losing 6-1 to Tajikistan in Islamabad shortly after their defeat to Saudi Arabia.
“The Pakistani football team couldn’t depart for Tajikistan,” the PFF said in a statement on Monday. “The team was supposed to leave via a chartered flight on Wednesday, but the flight was halted due to technical issues.”
The national squad had already arrived at the airport lounge when the flight was canceled, the statement added.
Pakistan sits at the bottom of Group G in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers and is already out of contention for the third round after losing four consecutive matches.
Alongside Saudi Arabia, Pakistan’s Group G opponents include Jordan and Tajikistan. In the second round of the qualifiers, 36 teams are divided into nine groups of four. The winners and runners-up from each group advance to the third round.
Pakistan squad:
Goalkeepers: Yousuf Butt (D), Saqib Hanif and Hassan Ali
Defenders: Abdullah Iqbal (D), Mohammad Fazal (D), Haseeb Khan, Rao Omer Hayat, Mamoon Moosa, Mohammad Saddam,
Waqar Ihtisham, Moin Ahmed and Abdul Rehman
Midfielders: Rahis Nabi (D), Otis Khan (D), Ali Uzair, Umair Ali, Toqeer ul Hassan, Alamgir Ghazi and Ali Zafar
Forwards: Imran Kayani (D), McKeal Abdulah, Fareedulah, Adeel Younas and Shayak Dost
