SAUDI ARABIA 1-2 KUWAIT
Kuwait, champions in 2010, recovered from a slow start to take a successful first step in this year’s edition, coming from behind to beat Saudi Arabia 2-1 in an entertaining clash at Frasno Hariri Stadium.
The Kuwaitis emerged victorious in a match which produced three goals, two penalties and a late red card to secure their first international win of 2019, and continue their perfect record in WAFF Championship opening matches
It was Saudi Arabia who struck the first blow, taking the lead in the 13th minute after a perfectly weighted pass from Abdulkarim Alqahtani set up Rabee Sufyani, with the Al Taawoun man never looking like missing the chance to finish off what was a lovely move.
Kuwait - who prepared for tournament with a tour in England which included a series of matches against lower league opponents - hit back from the penalty spot 12 minutes later, with Hussein Al Mosawi calmly converting the spot-kick after Saudi Arabia’s Sami Al Khaibari had brought Faisal Al Harbi down.
The match had its second penalty in a matter of minutes when Ali Al Nemer was fouled by Amer Al Fadhel at the other end of the pitch, but Al Qahtani’s penalty kick wasn’t as accurate as his earlier pass, and he sent the ball crashing into the bottom of the left-hand upright.
Saudi Arabia looked to regain advantage in the early stages of the second period, but it was Romeo Jozak’s side who went in front when Faisal Ajab latched onto a long ball before unleashing a sweetly struck left-foot effort which flew past Saudi goalkeeper Mustafa Malaeka in the 67th minute.
Ajab tried a similar effort without success, before Saudi Arabia’s younger Al Qahtani – 2018 AFC U-19 Championship winner Abdulmohsen – forced a save at the other end in intense late exchanges.
Kuwait were reduced to 10 men when substitute Redha Abu Jubarah was shown a second yellow card in the fourth minute of stoppage time, but it made little difference to the final result as Kuwait held on for a 2-1 win.
JORDAN 0-1 BAHRAIN
In Sunday’s earlier match, Bahrain withstood Jordanian pressure before taking all three points with a 1-0 win, with veteran Ismaeel Abdullatif emerging as the matchwinner.
Bahrain’s win, their first under recently appointed Portuguese head coach Hélio Sousa, sets them up nicely for Wednesday’s clash against Saudi Arabia.
Sousa’s side enjoyed promising opening minutes, but Jordan slowly began to exert their influence on the match, even finding the back of the net through Yousef Rawshdeh, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside.
With the sides still level in the 69th minute, Abdullatif provided the game’s decisive moment, dribbling inside two defenders before beating Jordanian goalkeeper Ahmad Abdelsattar at his near post from 10 yards.
Jordan looked respond to Abdullatif’s breakthrough, but despite two dangerous late attempts from Ahmad Ersan – the second of which hit the woodwork in the 89th minute – the equaliser never materialised for Vital Borkelmans’ side.
With only the group winners advancing to the final on August 14, Jordan have little option but to beat Kuwait in their next match on Wednesday, while Bahrain will look to continue their strong start against the Saudis.
Photos: West Asian Football Federation
