"Thrilling Draw"... Between Al-Arabi and Kuwait
A thrilling 3-3 draw defined the top-of-the-table clash between defending champions Al Kuwait and their Arab rivals Al Arabi, played on Tuesday evening at the Ali Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, in the opening round of the 65th edition of the Zain Premier League.
Al Arabi took the lead with a brilliant moment from Ali Khalaf, who started the match as a substitute for the unprepared Nigerian Iano Iyawa. Khalaf dribbled past Abdullah Al-Qaradai into the Al Kuwait penalty area and finished past goalkeeper Saud Al-Houshan to the right (22nd minute).
Al Kuwait did not take long to equalize, capitalizing on confusion in the Al Arabi defense and a mistake by goalkeeper Suleiman Abdulghafour, who failed to clear the ball properly. The loose ball fell to Sami Al-Sana, who shot it toward Bahraini player Mohammed Marhoon, who blocked it before it crossed the line (30th minute).
Marhoon then added a second goal for Al Arabi, converting a precise cross from Mohammed Daham with a header past Abdulghafour to the right (42nd minute).
With the start of the second half, Al Arabi pressed for an equalizer and succeeded through Zaid Qanbar, who finished a clever pass from Ali Aziz, placing the ball under the goalkeeper (53rd minute).
Amid a clear decline in Al Kuwait’s performance, Al Arabi nearly scored a third goal when the post denied Ethiopian striker Kenyan Markini. Markini later won a penalty for his team after a dangerous challenge by Al Kuwait defender Sami Al-Sana. Gabonese referee Pierre Atcho consulted the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) before Qanbar successfully converted the penalty (87th minute).
The drama continued as Al Kuwait snatched an equalizer in stoppage time. After a scramble in front of the goal, Mohammed Khalaf attempted to clear the ball, but it struck the advancing Congolese defender and deflected into the net (90+3rd minute).
Al Kuwait has undergone several changes this summer. Veteran Brazilian defender Alex Lima was among the departures after spending seven seasons with the club. New signings include Uzbek Shahzod Azimiddinov, Congolese Trezor Chebiwaba, Gabonese David Sambyssa, Bahraini Abdullah Youssef, and Syrian Mahmoud Al-Aswad, whose contract was renewed. Meanwhile, Al Nasr, led by their former and new coach Zahir Al-Adwani, aims to secure a positive result away from home. The "Coral" squad undertook a pre-season camp in Cairo, which was the shortest among all clubs, lasting only 15 days, but they played useful friendly matches against Egyptian clubs regardless of the results.
The club signed five new foreign players this summer: Tunisian Hazem Haj Hassan, Malian Moriba Diarra, Sudanese Abdulrahman Koko, Mauritanian international Sidi Yacoub, and Algerian Ayman Lakjaa, who previously played for the team two seasons ago. They also signed Lebanese player Karim Shahin, who is eligible through his Kuwaiti birth.
In another match, Al Shabab and their guests Al Jahra hope for a successful start to the season to make up for their failure last year, when they narrowly avoided relegation to the First Division following the Football Association’s decision to cancel relegation and increase the number of teams in the Premier League to 12.
The preparations of "Ahmadi Blue" (Al Shabab) for the new season were heavily influenced by Brazilian elements, with the signing of coach Wagner Andrade and compatriots Marcelo Lima, Marcus Martinelli, Michael Angelo, Giovanni Silva, and Matheus Toto.
On the other hand, Al Jahra’s preparations for the new season did not go as planned due to administrative issues at the club.
The management reaffirmed its trust in coach and club native Ahmed Abdul-Karim, but the team failed to secure adequate preparation. They limited themselves to local training and friendly matches against First Division teams, as well as a final friendly against Al Salmiya, which they lost 2-4.
