The Iraqi national team is looking to secure its qualification to the semi-finals of the twenty-seventh edition of the Arabian Gulf Football Cup currently being held in the city of Jeddah, when it meets its previously qualified Saudi counterpart, today, at 8:30 pm, in the third and final round of the first group competitions.
The Saudi team officially qualified for the semi-finals after achieving full marks in the first two rounds, by defeating Kuwait with a goal without a response, then over Oman with three goals without a response, raising its score to six points at the top of the group, with a difference of two points in front of the Iraqi team, while the Omani team occupies third place with one point, and Kuwait is in fourth place with no points.
A draw with Saudi Arabia is enough for the Iraqi team to raise its score to five points and secure the second qualifying card for the semi-finals, after starting the journey with a draw with the Omani team with a similar goal, before achieving an exciting victory over the Kuwaiti team by three goals to two, while the victory over Saudi Arabia guarantees it to qualify at the top of the group with seven points.
While the Saudi team seeks to continue its positive results and finish the group stage with a full mark at the top of the standings, the Iraqi team is looking forward to continuing its good performances, in order to come out with a result that gives it a qualification card.
In the second match, the Omani team clings to its last chance to qualify when it faces Kuwait, at 8:30 pm, as it has no alternative but to win and raise its score to four points, then wait for the Iraqi team to lose to its Saudi counterpart, provided that the goal difference is in its favor in order to snatch the second card from the group. The Omani team tied with Iraq by one goal for the same in the first round, before losing to Saudi Arabia by three unanswered goals, while the Kuwaiti team suffered two losses to Saudi Arabia by one unanswered goal and Iraq by three goals to two, officially being eliminated from the calculations of qualifying for the semi-finals.
The Omani team will need great offensive effectiveness to score the largest possible number of goals and wait for the Saudi team to win. On the other hand, the Kuwaiti team is looking forward to achieving a moral victory and ending its participation in the tournament on a positive note.
Assistant coach of the Saudi national team: We are facing difficulties in choosing the squad
The Greek Seraphim Englinas, assistant coach of the Saudi national team, revealed Al-Akhdar’s readiness to face his Iraqi counterpart. Englinas, who attended on behalf of his compatriot Georgios Donis, Al-Akhdar’s coach, said at the press conference: “Donis has a health problem, but he will be present in today’s confrontation. As for the Iraq match, we are facing some problems and difficulties with some players being exposed to various injuries, but we have to focus on the key players, and we will try to provide the best in light of the available options.” He stated: “We are looking for victory against Iraq, and we want to be at the top of the standings. As I said previously, our situation is difficult, but in the last training we will choose the best options available to enter the squad.” Regarding the way in which Al-Akhdar will play, he said: “We seek to work in the defensive and offensive ranks, but we must focus a lot on defense, and the same applies to the front line.”
Iraqi national team coach: We realize the difficulty of the task, but…
Australian Graham Arnold, coach of the Iraqi national team, described his opponent, Al-Akhdar, as difficult and strong. He said during the press conference: “We are facing the Saudi team in specific ways, and they are capable of defeating us, but we have worked on important preparations, and we are striving to achieve victory over them.” He added: “We have analyzed the Saudi team. I know very well how its members play, and we have played against each other in previous confrontations, and we realize that the pressure in the match will be on us, but we must work to give everything we have, because Al-Akhdar has players.” They are distinguished, and confronting them on their home soil is very difficult, but we worked on the mental aspects.”
He concluded his speech and said: “I am very happy with the performance of the Iraqi team, and the level presented by the players, and against Saudi Arabia we must play seriously to achieve a positive result.”
Oman national team coach: An important confrontation to achieve our goals
Moroccan Tariq Al-Saktiwi, coach of the Oman national team, stressed the importance of the victory against Kuwait today. The Omani national team coach said in a statement during the press conference held yesterday that facing Kuwait is very important, as long as there is hope to qualify for the semi-finals, which is what they will work on. Al-Saktiwi pointed out that the Omani team entered the competitions with a clear plan, aiming to appear well and make the most of the tournament in developing the team in the future. He added that after assuming the task of coaching the national team, they had short-term and long-term goals, pointing out that today’s confrontation will be among the goals that will help them develop in the future.
Kuwait national team coach: We are working to develop the players’ performance
Portuguese Helio Souza, coach of the Kuwaiti national team, pointed out the importance of focusing in the next stage on developing the level of the national team, going beyond thinking about the achievements of the past and working to build a national team capable of competing in the future.
Souza sent a message to the Kuwaiti fans, stressing that the goal at the present time is not focused on achieving victory in just one or two matches, adding that the technical staff is working to develop performance in order to compete for championships.
He concluded his statement by saying that the technical staff is doing its best alongside the players.
A Qatari team managed the confrontation between Kuwait and Oman
The Referees Committee of the Gulf Football Association assigned the task of managing the confrontation between Kuwait and Oman, within the third round of the first group competitions in the Arabian Gulf Cup “Gulf 27”, to a Qatari refereeing team.
The match will be led by referee Mohammed Al-Shammari, assisted by Zahi Al-Shammari as first assistant, and Khaled Ayed as second assistant, while Meshari Al-Shammari is in charge of the video assistant referee (VAR).
The match will be held at 8:30 pm today at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium, in a confrontation during which the two teams will seek to enhance their chances of competing in the first group.
A police investigator leads the match between Al-Akhdar and Iraq
Dutch referee Danny Makele leads the confrontation between the Saudi national team and its Iraqi counterpart. It is noteworthy that Makelely led 6 matches this season, including 4 in the Dutch League and one in the European League qualifiers, in addition to the confrontation between Al Hilal and Al Fayhaa in the Saudi Roshen League.
The 43-year-old Dutch referee, who also works as an investigating policeman in Rotterdam, began his refereeing career at a young age, becoming a certified referee from the Dutch Amateur Federation at the age of sixteen.
«Gulf 28» hosted by Iraq
The Executive Office of the Gulf Football Federation held its meeting yesterday, on the sidelines of the “27th Arabian Gulf” Championship, headed by His Excellency Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Thani, President of the Federation, and in the presence of members of the Executive Office.
The meeting discussed the Iraqi Federation’s request to host the 28th edition of the Gulf Cup Championship, which is the only hosting request submitted by the member federations, as the Executive Office approved the request and granted Iraq the right to organize.
The Iraqi Football Association is committed to informing the Gulf Football Association of the city that will host the tournament within the specified period