"Gulf 27": Qatar secures its first victory at Bahrain's expense

At the conclusion of the first round of matches in Gulf Cup 27, Qatar defeated Bahrain 2-0 in a closely contested game. Khoukhi Boualem scored the first goal in the 62nd minute, following an excellent setup by Akram Afif, and Hassan Al-Haydos added the second goal in the second half. With that result, the Qatari national team secured its first three points of the tournament, while defending champions Bahrain failed to meet expectations and suffered their first defeat, though they remain in contention. The match saw Bahrain defender Abbas Al-Asfour sent off in the 94th minute for conceding a penalty, which veteran Hassan Al-Haydos converted in the 90+7th minute. Earlier, Saudi referee Khaled Al-Durais dismissed Qatari player Ahmed Al-Fateh in the 69th minute.