Gulf 17.. Al-Annabi of Qatar clinches the title.. Al-Habsi clings to the best

The 17th Gulf Cup tournament was held in Qatar from December 10 to 24, 2004, the edition that witnessed Iraq’s return to the tournament, so that the number of participating teams would be 8 representing the Gulf countries: Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Yemen, and Iraq.

The tournament was held in a two-group system, and the matches were played at Al-Sadd and Al-Rayyan stadiums, so that the first and second of each group qualified for the semi-finals.

The first group included: Oman, Qatar, the Emirates, and Iraq, and the Oman national team qualified first with 6 points, then Qatar second with 5 points, while the second group included: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Yemen, and Kuwait qualified with 7 points, and the Bahraini Red second. With 5 points.

In the semi-finals of the tournament, Omani Red beat its Bahraini brother 3/2, and Al-Annabi of Qatar defeated Kuwaiti Blue 2/0, to set the first group teams a date in the exciting final, which was decided only by penalty kicks in favor of Qatar 6/5, after a draw in normal time 1/1, while the Bahraini Al-Ahmar snatched the third place by defeating his Kuwaiti brother 3/1.

The tournament witnessed the scoring of 50 goals over the course of 16 confrontations, and Omani Imad Al Hosani won the title of top scorer in the tournament with 4 goals, and Bahraini Talal Youssef won the title of best player, and Hafiz Ali Al Habsi won the title of best goalkeeper.