Kuwait and Iraq in a pivotal showdown.. and Saudi Arabia to qualify for the semi-finals

Iraq and Kuwait have a rich history of confrontations in the Gulf Cup, as the two teams have met 11 times; Iraq won four of them and Kuwait three, while four matches ended in a draw.

The two teams' confrontations have always been characterized by rivalry, the latest of which was in the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, which ended in a 2-2 draw in Baghdad in March 2025.

The Kuwaiti national team is looking to make amends after its loss to Saudi Arabia, at a time when its Portuguese coach, Hélio Sousa, continues to build a team that relies on young elements, while seeking to lower the average age of the squad to under 26 years without abandoning experienced players.

Sousa will face a different test against Iraq, after the Saudi match revealed the "Al-Azraq" need to improve ball distribution and transition from defense to attack.

The Portuguese coach will look to make better use of the speed of his players in the front line, while maintaining defensive balance, especially since the Iraqi team showed an ability to push forward offensively at the beginning of its match against Oman.

Kuwaiti player Abdulwahab Al-Awadhi told Agence France-Presse, "We have turned the page on the loss to Saudi Arabia, as matches follow every 72 hours, which imposes a fast pace on the players and the necessity of preparing for the next match."

He added, "We are ready to face Iraq, and we understand the fans' anger due to the loss in the opening match, and we seek to make amends against Iraq and present the image that the fans expect from us."

Al-Awadhi did not hide the Kuwaiti team's feeling of pressure, saying, "Pressure is normal in all tournament matches, and we as players realize that, and we have confidence in our ability to deal with it and achieve a result that helps us advance to the second round."

For his part, Kuwaiti defender Abdulaziz Naji promised the fans to make amends against Iraq, and said that luck abandoned "Al-Azraq" in the opening match against Saudi Arabia, noting that the players are required to exploit the opportunities available to them and turn them into goals.

The Australian coach of Iraq, Graham Arnold, reminded everyone before the training session that took place after the Oman match that "the Iraqi national team deserved to come out with a big result given the field advantage and the scoring chances that were wasted."

He added, "The absence of the final touch was the only and real obstacle in front of the number of chances that were not exploited."

The Australian considered that "the absence of professionals (abroad) from the Oman match was due to their late joining of the national team's squad, while we gave the opportunity to the local league players because they are more adapted to the humidity and weather in the region."

For his part, former international player Karim Mohammed Allawi confirmed to AFP that "the opportunity still exists for Iraq and Kuwait to continue their journey in the Gulf Cup tournament, which means that Saturday's confrontation will be exciting and sensitive."

He continued, "The Iraq and Kuwait match in Gulf tournaments always makes headlines, as they are the two teams that have won the tournament title the most, and their match is at the peak of rivalry and competition, so their match in Jeddah will be intense and its result is linked to their fate in continuing or not in the tournament atmosphere."

Allawi, who played in four Gulf tournaments, added, "The Iraq and Kuwait match will not end in a draw, but will be decided by a win for whoever makes better use of the differences, because a draw will not serve them, and perhaps it will give Oman an advantage before facing Saudi Arabia."

Saudi Arabia to continue a historical superiority over Oman

At the Al-Inmaa Stadium in Jeddah, the Saudi "Green" looks forward to continuing its historical superiority over its Omani counterpart, after winning 18 of 26 previous meetings in various confrontations, compared to only 4 victories for Oman.

The Greek coach of Saudi Arabia, Giorgos Donis, considered that "one of my priorities is to give the players confidence and calmness in the national team, and they can acquire that match after match."

It is expected that the coach, who exited with Saudi Arabia from the group stage in the 2026 World Cup, will make some adjustments to the squad that won against Kuwait, noting that his team lost the services of goalkeeper Nawaf Al-Aqidi due to injury.

Player Mohammed Al-Qahtani did not participate in the training session due to feeling abdominal pain.

The Western coach of Oman, Tarik Sektioui, said after the draw with Iraq, "One of the things I want to change in the mentality of the players is that we enter every match for the sake of victory," adding, "The team is still in a state of construction."

Oman includes a group of distinguished names, such as Ibrahim Al-Mukhaini, Ahmed Al-Kaabi, Harib Al-Saadi, Jameel Al-Yahmadi, Issam Al-Subhi, and Nasser Al-Rawahi.