The UAE team bid farewell to the 25th Gulf Cup, and the Kuwaiti team revived its hopes
The UAE national team officially bid farewell to the 25th Gulf Cup competitions, after suffering a second loss against the Kuwaiti national team, with a single goal scored by substitute Ahmed Al-Dhafiri in the 94th minute, while the Kuwaiti revived his hopes in the second group, and his fate will be determined in his last match in his group against the Bahrain national team.
The first half had ended in a negative draw, and the Kuwaiti team did not take advantage of its field superiority and its arrival in the dangerous area after imposing its style on the field, but it lacked the final touch in front of the goal, in addition to the success of the Emirati goalkeeper Khaled Issa in confronting more than one attempt, while the UAE team relied on the balls. The rebound, and the most dangerous opportunity, was the ball that threatened the goal of Kuwaiti goalkeeper Suleiman Abdul Ghafour, who succeeded in controlling the ball heading towards the goal in the fatal time of the first half.
In the second half, the conditions changed for the Emirati team, which initiated the attack and sought to break the tie with a pressing attack on the goal of Suleiman Abdul Ghafour. The Kuwaiti team retreated to counter the attack of the UAE team and then resorted to rebound balls that did not represent a real threat to the goal.
The two coaches made several substitutions, and after the Emirati missed several chances, substitute Ahmed Abdullah Al-Dhafiri managed to snatch the winning goal in stoppage time, specifically in the 94th minute for the Kuwaiti national team, from a penalty kick that he fired into the UAE net.