The Palestinian team is closer to the World Cup than ever after reaching the third round of qualifying in Asia as one of the top 18 on the continent.

The next phase starts with one of the toughest possible soccer assignments in Asia, with the Palestinians taking on South Korea in front of 66,000 fans in Seoul on Thursday. The South Koreans have qualified for the past 10 World Cup tournaments, and were semifinalists in 2002.

The top two from each of the three groups in this Asian qualifier will claim six of the eight spots allocated to the Asian Football Confederation at the 2026 World Cup. The teams that finish third and fourth will go into a fourth round to compete for two more spots.

“Our goal is to be among the first four teams in the group, and we are capable of that,” Makram Daboub, head coach of the Palestinian team, told The Associated Press. “I’m very happy to have reached this important stage, and I am very proud of the players, and it is the result of teamwork.”

Facing South Korea and English Premier League talent such as Son Heung-min is a different challenge for the team ranked No. 96 in the world.

“Son is a very excellent player, but we are playing against the Korean national team and he also has other good players, so our focus is more on the group and playing with the best teams in Asia,” Daboub said.

The other teams in Group B include Iraq, Jordan, Oman and Kuwait.

The Palestinians spent time in Malaysia preparing for their opening match and will return to Kuala Lumpur for next week’s game against Jordan.

Daboub’s squad is familiar with playing on the road.

The Palestinian team progressed through the second round of continental qualifying for the first time in its history in June but, because of the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip, staged its “home” games in nearby Kuwait and Qatar.

Israel launched a major offensive in Gaza in response to an Oct. 7 Hamas attack into southern Israel in which around 1,200 people were killed and another 250 people were abducted.

The war is now in its 11th month and has killed more than 40,000 people, according to Gaza health officials.

“The situation is getting more difficult in all aspects,” Daboub said. “What worries me most is, in addition to the psychological aspect as a result of the situation, there is also the physical condition of the players, because most of them are without clubs.”

The game in Seoul is the first for Hong Myung-bo in his second spell as head coach of the South Korean team.

“I think the match is important for the national team, not for me personally,” Hong, who resigned after the 2014 tournament in Brazil, said. “This is World Cup qualification.”

The toughest qualifying group in Asia is Group C, which contains Japan, Australia and Saudi Arabia.

Japan, which opens at home against China, has 20 Europe-based players on its roster and is Asia’s highest-ranked team at No. 18.

Australia and Saudi Arabia are each aiming for their seventh World Cup appearance.

“We need to focus on our job, get that job done, because it’s important. Phase two is over and phase three is beginning,” Socceroos coach Graham Arnold said ahead of Australia’s opening game against Bahrain. “Everyone starts on zero points, zero goals for and against, and it all starts from now.”

In Group A, Iran is expected to qualify for a fourth successive World Cup and 2022 host Qatar is aiming to advance through qualifying for the first time. Qatar opens against United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan hosts North Korea.

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By JOHN DUERDEN Associated Press