Al-Qadisiya hosts its group in the Challenge League

The group stage draw will be held on a round-robin basis from October 4 to 23, with the draw for the competitions taking place on October 20.

Alongside Al-Qadsia, Al-Arabi represents Kuwait in the tournament. The team lost its playoff match for the AFC Champions League Two to Indian hosts East Bengal 4-1 on Wednesday.

The draw will place Al-Qadsia, Al-Arabi, and Indian side Gokulam Kerala in the first pot. The second pot will feature Turkmenistan’s Ahal, Lebanon’s Ansar, and their compatriots Al-Najma. The third pot will include Kazakhstan’s Istiklol, their compatriots Regar-TadAZ, and Bangladesh’s Fortis.

The Asian Football Confederation’s approval of Al-Qadsia’s request has added a sense of relief to the team’s camp, which is currently held in the Turkish city of Izmit.

The “Yellow” team continues its preparations under the guidance of its old-new coach, Mohamed Ibrahim. They have a final friendly match scheduled against Bahraini side Al-Khaldiya on October 17 before returning to the country the following day to begin preparations for the new season, which kicks off with a match against Al-Fahaheel on August 25 or 26 in the opening round of the Zain Premier League.

For his part, Al-Arabi’s delegation will return tomorrow, Friday, from the Indian city of Kolkata after being eliminated from the AFC Champions League Two playoff.

The team will resume training on Saturday in preparation for the new season of the Zain Premier League, where they face a tough clash against titleholders Al-Kuwait in the opening round.

According to sources close to the “Green” club, the club management will meet with delegation head Khaled Al-Qabandi and the administrative and technical staff upon their return to discuss the reasons for their exit from the playoff and the heavy, unexpected defeat they suffered.

Sources noted that the file of foreign players will be a strong topic in the meeting, and it is expected that a review of the foreign players’ list will take place, with some being released.

Among the candidates for departure are Senegalese defender Khadem Rasul and Palestinian striker Zaid Qanbar, with a lower probability, Brazilian defender Leonardo Sheldon and his compatriot Lucas Chalon, who was not registered for the East Bengal match.

In the British capital, London, Al-Kuwait coach Alexandre Santos expressed great satisfaction with his players’ performance in their fourth match against English side Brighton, which was closed to the media.

Also in Izmit, Al-Salmiya drew 2-2 with Bahraini side Al-Khaldiya in their fourth experimental match at their camp there.

Bahraini players Abdullah Yousef and Yousef Anizan scored from penalty kicks for the “Sky Blue” team, which had previously lost 3-0 to Egyptian side ZED, drawn 0-0 with Qatari Al-Markhiya, and 2-2 with Algerian Olympique de Chlef in their earlier trials.

In the same city, Kazma concluded their preparatory camp with a 1-1 draw against Algerian Olympique de Chlef on the eve of their return to Kuwait tomorrow, Friday.

Brazilian Robinson scored for the “Orange” team, which remained unbeaten during the camp after drawing 2-2 with Qatari Al-Wakrah, before defeating Saudi Al-Raed 4-1 and Al-Khaldiya 2-1.

As part of the clubs’ preparations for the new season, Al-Nasr will face Ceramica Cleopatra on Saturday in their second experimental match at their camp in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

The “Coral” team had lost 3-1 to El-Geish, a side active in the Egyptian Premier League (first division), on Wednesday in their first experimental match, with Tunisian player Hazem Haj Hassan scoring their goal.