Al-Azraq Faces Qatar's Lusail in Preparation for Gulf Cup 27

Kuwaiti Sports Minister and Chairman of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki, extended his sincere gratitude to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz for his gracious patronage of the “Gulf Cup 27” tournament.

In a statement, bin Turki said that the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques’ patronage of the 27th edition of the Arabian Gulf Cup “embodies the generous support and attention afforded by our wise leadership to the sports sector, reflecting their continuous care for sports and athletes, and their support for the Kingdom’s hosting of major sporting events and competitions, alongside their commitment to strengthening the bonds of brotherhood and love among the peoples of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.”

He added: “This tournament represents a cherished sporting occasion for the people of the region, given its history and special status in the trajectory of Gulf sports.”

Meanwhile, the Kuwait senior national football team will play a friendly match against Al-Lail Club at 7:00 PM today at the Aspire Academy pitches in Doha, Qatar, as part of the Blue Jays’ training camp there in preparation for the “Gulf Cup 27,” which will be hosted by Saudi Arabia from October 23 to October 6 next year.

The Blue Jays are in Group 1 alongside the national teams of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Oman, while Group 2 includes defending champions Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Yemen.

The technical staff of the Blue Jays, led by Portuguese coach Helio Sousa, is expected to field all 19 players brought to the Qatari camp to assess their technical and physical levels, as well as their grasp of the tactical and technical drills practiced since their arrival in Doha.

It is worth noting that eight Kuwait SC players selected by Sousa are absent from the national team’s training sessions, as they remained with their club, which will face Al-Ittihad Kalba in the opening match of Group 1 of the second-tier AFC Champions League Two on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi.

Al-Lail recently earned promotion to the Qatar Stars League and boasts a squad of capable local and international players, underscoring the significance of the upcoming match for Sousa and his assistants.

The Blue Jays trained yesterday in two sessions, morning and evening, while the team had only one training session last Friday.

The head of the medical department at the Kuwait Football Association and chief medical officer of the national team confirmed that the squad is training at full strength, including Yousif Majed, who is participating in training normally.

He noted that all players have recovered from the bruises they sustained while playing for their clubs in the third round of the Zain Premier League.

Al-Jarida learned that the technical staff of the Olympic national team, led by Spanish coach David Doniga, will replace three players in the squad for the 20th Asian Games (Aichi-Nagoya 2026), to be held in Japan from October 19 to October 4 next year. The players being dropped are Abdulrahman Ajaj, Nasser Khader, and Ali Hassan. Al-Salmiya goalkeeper Abdullah Al-Ayoub was the first player called up to the team.

Meanwhile, the Kuwait Olympic national team continues its training in Tokyo in preparation for the match against Vietnam, scheduled for the day after tomorrow. Everyone is counting on the team to secure the three points to compete for advancement to the second round.