Qatar's keeper gifted Australia two goals on their first three-goal away night in 5 years

Australia had not scored three goals in an international away from home in five years, according to AAP. They did it inside 40 minutes in Doha on Friday, and Qatar goalkeeper Mahmoud Abunada had a hand in two of them. Riley McGree, Tete Yengi and Nestory Irankunda scored in a 3-0 friendly win over the two-time defending Asian Cup champions at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Australia's first win of any kind since they beat Türkiye at the World Cup in June.

The first came in the fifth minute. Abunada, new in Julen Lopetegui's lineup, tried a short pass to his center backs and played it straight to McGree, who rolled it into an empty net with his left foot. It was the Middlesbrough midfielder's second goal for Australia, four years after his first, and it came in his return to the starting lineup after he missed the World Cup with a hamstring injury suffered in Middlesbrough's Championship playoff final loss to Hull City in May.

The second, just after the half-hour, followed another poor clearance from Abunada. Connor Metcalfe got in the way of it and fed Tete Yengi in the box, and Yengi finished into the bottom corner for his second goal in six caps.

Metcalfe was involved again in the 40th minute, stealing the ball in midfield and finding Irankunda at the edge of the area. The Sporting winger drove it past Abunada for his eighth international goal.

AAP counted 14 Australian shots to three for Qatar, and Qatar didn't fire their first shot until the 72nd minute. Their only shot on target was a late goal from substitute Yusuf Abdurisag that was ruled out for offside. Lopetegui made six changes at halftime and after, per the Qatar News Agency, without changing much.

Tony Popovic made one change from the team that played Brazil last month, bringing in McGree for Jackson Irvine, who was left out of the squad for this window. In the second half Popovic handed debuts to Eli Adams, Sam Klein, Kasey Bos and Diesel Herrington, who replaced his brother Lucas in central defense. Kusini Yengi made his first appearance since 2024 when he came on for his brother Tete at halftime, and Gianni Stensness played for Australia for the first time since 2022.

The Asian Cup that Australia were preparing for has been moved from January to December 2027 in Saudi Arabia because of the conflict in the region, and that changes what a window like this one is for. With no tournament two months away, Popovic can look at new players without a deadline hanging over him, and Friday's result gives him a strong first test to build from.

Australia stay in Doha for their second game, against Asian Cup finalists Jordan on Tuesday, Nov. 17, after the match was moved from Amman. Qatar face South Korea at the same stadium that night. For Lopetegui, the concern going into that game is simple: two of the three goals his team conceded started with his own goalkeeper.