JEDDAH, 27 December 2003 — Champions Saudi Arabia began their campaign in the 16th Gulf Soccer Championships in Kuwait with a clinical 2-0 victory over United Arab Emirates (UAE), but hosts Kuwait were stemmed in their stride by a gritty Oman in the opening match of the championship in a goalless encounter.
Kuwait, who had trained in Cyprus for this event, found Oman a difficult customer to beat in front of a capacity crowd even after Oman had been reduced to ten men for most of the second session.
The new-look Omani team, ironically, controlled the majority of the exchanges throughout the match and their fast running game threw the Kuwaitis off stride. Kuwait relied on the slow buildups and this weighed in favor of the quicker Omanis, who mounted an excellent defense to counter this.
Both the teams got off to a slow start, testing each other for the first 10 minuets with some probing moves and clinical midfield passing. But the Omanis soon took over the attacking reins and almost got on to the scoreboard in the 27th minute.
A fine cross from right wing cleared all Kuwaiti defenders and went to Oman striker Hani Al-Dhabet, who was positioned just two meters from an empty goal. But the striker sent the ball over with a hasty shot.
Throughout the first half, Oman proved the more organized and controlled the midfield and effectively smothered the Kuwaitis with some fine marking to end the first half 0-0.
Oman took off from where they had left off and looked more dangerous than their opponents in the early past of the session. But near disaster struck Oman in the 54th minute when defender Khalefa Ayel was sent out for a tough tackle on a Kuwaiti attacker.
Despite being one man down, Oman regrouped and still managed to control the entire second half with an attacking display and this proved decisive as Kuwait failed to cash in on the numerical advantage and were forced to drop a point in the scoreless tie and the host in front of their own home crowd.
Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, showed that they would be the team to beat in the seven-nation contest with a disciplined outing against the UAE in the second match of the day.
Both the teams have been rated prior to the start of the matchup with Saudi Arabia relying on experience and UAE coming to the event with a fresh infusion of new blood. But on this given day it was experience that proved the key.
Saudi Arabia controlled most of the first half they came close to scoring in the sixth minute when Ahmad Al-Dhoky’s shot went inches wide from the bar. But seven minutes later they took the lead when Yousri Al-Basha was tackled inside the box and the referee awarded a penalty kick for Saudi Arabia. Muhammad Al-Shalhoub scored.
Saudi Arabia continued to string some cohesive attacks on UAE team and in the 38th minute, Muhammad Al-Shalhoub’s defense-splitting pass was wasted by Muhammad Nur, whose angled shot was diverted out by the UAE goalie for an abortive corner. With Muhammad Al-Shalhoub directing the attacks, Saudi Arabia kept the UAE defense on their toes and the UAE goalkeeper was repeatedly called upon to stave off the Saudis.
The UAE took the field in the second half with a vigorous display of attacking football, but after ten minutes of flash and dash they were pegged back with the Saudis regaining control and setting the tempo. Saudi goalie Mabrouk Zaied brought off a good save off Muhammad Omar in the 50th minute. Omar was sent clear by Abdulraheem Jumaa with a splendid cross. The Saudis continued to attack and twice Al-Basha came close to scoring. In the 87th minute The Saudis doubled their score. From a set piece, Ahmad Al-Dhoky sent the ball over the defensive wall to Saudi defender Rida Tukar, who scored the second goal vie a header.
Asian Cup Final Draw in China’s Chongqing on Jan. 15
Meanwhile, the draw for the 2004 Asian Cup finals will be made on Jan. 15 in Chongqing city in southwest China, the Asian Football Confederation said on its website.
A total of 16 teams will enter the draw for the finals which will be played in China for the first time from July 17 to Aug. 7.
Hosts China and defending champions Japan will be joined in the hat by 14 qualifiers — Uzbekistan, Thailand, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Jordan, Iran, Oman, South Korea, Iraq, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and Turkmenistan.
The 16 teams will be divided into four groups of four teams with the seedings announced at a later date, the AFC said. Chongqing is one of the four host cities for the Asian Cup finals, along with Chengdu, Jinan and Beijing.
