Iraq claimed a 3-0 victory over Kuwait in their Group B encounter at Hamad bin Khalifa Stadium, according to a dispatch from Shafaq News. Hassan Haider scored from the penalty spot in the first half to open the scoring. Ali Al-Bahadli added the second goal in the 62nd minute while Rasoul Mohammed completed the result with a strike in the 89th minute.
The defeat followed Kuwait’s 3-0 loss to Egypt in the team’s tournament opener four days earlier, tournament updates from the Kuwait News Agency reported. Egypt had posted a 5-0 win against Saudi Arabia in its first match of the competition, a Kuwait News Agency summary from October 21 detailed. Kuwait entered the event as one of the competing sides in a field that includes both host and guest nations.
The Gulf U-17 Cup is taking place in Qatar for the second year in succession with a record 10 teams participating, the Kuwait News Agency stated ahead of the tournament kickoff. Egypt and China joined as guest teams alongside the eight regional sides, a Kuwait News Agency overview noted. Group B features Kuwait along with Iraq, Yemen, Egypt and defending champion Saudi Arabia while Group A consists of Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain, Oman and China.
Yemen and Saudi Arabia played to a 1-1 draw in the other Group B fixture on October 21, according to the Kuwait News Agency. Mohamed Aziz gave Yemen the lead in the 31st minute before Mishari Al-Shahrani equalized for Saudi Arabia in second-half stoppage time. Egypt sits atop the group with nine points from three matches while Kuwait remains without a point after two outings, data compiled by Soccer24.com shows.
Kuwait has been unable to find the net across 180 minutes of action while conceding six goals, figures released by the tournament organizers indicate. The team is set to play Saudi Arabia on October 26 and conclude the group phase against Yemen on October 29, the Kuwait Football Association fixture list confirms. The competition is scheduled to run until November 4 with the knockout rounds to follow.
The expanded format with guest participants has increased the scale of the under-17 championship compared to earlier editions, a Kuwait News Agency report on the event observed. Ten teams marks the largest participation in the tournament’s history, according to the same Kuwait News Agency summary. The competition serves as preparation for younger national squads across the Gulf region and beyond.
