The 'Blues' Head to Jeddah Today

The “Blue” delegation is traveling today from the Qatari capital, Doha, to the Saudi city of Jeddah, to enter the final stage of preparations for participation in the “Gulf Cup 27” championship. The “Blue” squad concluded its training camp in Qatar, which lasted for a week at the Aspire Academy pitches, featuring an intensive training program led by Portuguese coach Helio Sousa, along with a friendly match against Qatari club Al-Lusail, which ended in a 2-1 victory for the national team. The Blue goals were scored by Youssef Majed and Khaled Al-Murshed.

During the camp, Sousa sought to maximize technical and tactical benefits, assess the players’ understanding of the formations and tactics the coaching staff is implementing, and boost physical readiness while enhancing cohesion among the squad members ahead of the official competitions. The current Blue roster comprises 19 players, with eight Kuwait Club players absent due to their involvement in Al-Wehda’s UAE Champions League 2 match taking place today. The absent players are: Khaled Al-Rashidi, Saud Al-Houshan, Mohsen Fallah, Reda Hani, Ahmed Al-Dhafiri, Abdullah Al-Qarzai, Mohammed Daham, and Youssef Nasser. They are expected to join the national team delegation after concluding their commitments with “Al-Abyad” (the White).

The completion of the squad will provide the coaching staff with greater scope to focus on tactical aspects and select the players they will rely on during the tournament, particularly as Sousa now has a good understanding of his players’ capabilities following the recent training sessions and monitoring. The Blue squad will resume training immediately upon arrival in Jeddah, and will play their final friendly match against the Yemeni national team the day after tomorrow (Friday), as a final rehearsal before the official campaign begins.

The coaching staff hopes to bring the players to the highest levels of readiness as the opening kick approaches, especially since the Blue face strong opponents in the group stage, requiring high concentration and tactical stability from the very first match. The “Blue” will open their Gulf Cup 27 campaign against host nation Saudi Arabia on September 23, followed by a match against Iraq on September 26, and will conclude their group stage fixtures against Oman on September 29, as part of Group 1.