By Chidi Emmanuel
Kuwait: The Kuwait national football team revived their hopes on Saturday by beating Nepal 4-1 in the first group tournament of the Asian Cup qualifiers. In the match at the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, the Kuwait national team dominated the match in the first half and the second half. Kuwait’s Fahd Hammoud scored his first goal in the 28th minute.
In the second half, Kuwait’s Yousef Nasser scored in the 48th and 70th minutes, and Mubarak al-Fenini sealed in the 73rd minute. With this victory, the Kuwait team scored the first three points, but Nepal remained without points. Kuwait and Nepal belong to the same group (Group A), while Indonesia and Jordan played in different matches on Saturday.
In response to the match, Ahmed Khaled praised the excellent performance of the Kuwaiti team. “They played very well today. It was great. I’m proud of our team,” he told the Kuwait Times with a smile. Meanwhile, the multipurpose stadium Sheikh Jarbil al-Ahmad International Stadium was full of Kuwaiti fans singing and cheering for the team. “We are very happy. It would have been humiliating if Nepal had won in our country. They (Nepalese team) did their best, but the Kuwaiti team played better,” said Reem, a Kuwaiti woman. Said.
Some of the few Nepalese fans have expressed their disappointment. “I was hoping Nepal would beat Kuwait. I think it’s easier to beat Kuwait than Indonesia or Jordan. In fact, the Kuwait team played very well today, they deserve to win. “We still have hope. To qualify, we try to beat Indonesia. I’m here (Kuwait),” said Abhinav, a Nepalese expatriate. Nepal would have liked to beat Kuwait. Another Nepalese expatriate, Anish Badal, told the Kuwait Times.
In another development, Nepal’s national coach Abdullah Al-Sharahi had a heart attack during the match. He was later taken to Farwaniya Hospital for treatment.
