Kuwait Youth Team Suffers Defeat, But Hopes Remain Alive for Asian Cup Qualifiers

Our national youth team (under-20) lost to Yemen 1-3 yesterday in Cambodia in the second round of Group 7 of the Asian Cup qualifiers, which are scheduled to be held in China next year.

The “Blues” remain without any points after also losing their opening match to Japan 0-4. Their chances of qualification still depend on the results of the final round, while Yemen secured their first three points after avenging their 1-2 defeat to Cambodia.

In another match, Japan defeated Cambodia 8-0, raising their total to six points.

Our youth national team delivered a good performance in the first half, with right winger Muath Al-Mutairi standing out for his movements that troubled Yemen’s defenders.

Yemen took the lead in the 24th minute with a long-range strike from Mohammed Shams Al-Din. The “Blues” then became more active; Al-Mutairi fired a weak shot in the 29th minute, and Abdullah Al-Qarzaei unleashed a powerful effort that was saved by Yemen’s goalkeeper Wadha Anwar. Yusuf Al-Lanqawi also tried to find the net in the 37th minute, but the Yemeni goalkeeper thwarted his attempt. Al-Qarzaei tried again in the 42nd minute with a long-range shot that went wide. The first half ended with our team trailing 1-0.

In the second half, our youth “Blues” dominated possession and attempted to equalize on several occasions. Al-Mutairi’s shot in the 67th minute was difficultly diverted by goalkeeper Wadha Anwar into a corner, which did not lead to anything new.

Our team finally managed to equalize through a well-organized attack. The ball reached Fawaz Al-Dawood, who passed it to Hussein Al-Aryan. Al-Aryan delivered a brilliant heel pass to striker Musfer Al-Adwani, who fired a powerful shot into Yemen’s net in the 69th minute.

Yemen then scored two more goals through Mohammed Shams Al-Din in the 71st minute and Zaid Jihad in the 85th minute, ending the match with a 3-1 victory over our youth “Blues.”