Bahrain inched closer to their dream of lifting their first ever Arabian Gulf Cup title after they reached the final after defeating Iraq 5-3 in a penalty shootout after the regulation time and extra time ended in a 2-2 draw on Thursday.
Despite Iraq leading twice in the first half of the game, Helio Sous’ battalion returned to the match in a quick response and managed to book a slot in the final which will be held on Sunday at Khalifa International Stadium against Saudi Arabia.
All the four goals from both teams were scored in the first half. Muhannad Ali (6th) and Ibrahim Bayesh (18th) netted for Iraq while Abdullah al Hazza (14th) and Mohammed Marhoon (+45th) scored for Bahrain.
Bahrain are entering the final for the first time in their history after the implementation of the new system in the 17th edition of Arabian Gulf Cup in Qatar 2004.
Bahrain’s striker Mohammed Marhoon claimed the award of the best player in the game. He delivered a superb 120 minutes and managed to score the second equaliser for his team in the added time by the fourth referee.
In penalty shoot-out, Iraq’s Mohammed Qasim missed the penalty while Ali Fayiz, Dhurgham Ismail and Ibrahim Bahbesh found the target. From Bahrain side, all the penalties were scored as Mohammed al Hardan, Jassim al Sheikh, Mohammed Jasim, Tiagho and Ali Jaffer netted.
Bahrain’s Portuguese coach Helio Sousa expressed full satisfaction with the players’ performance in the match. “Thanks for the players for their heroic performance against Iraq. They played a top match and showed a high quality. This is a result of the hard work done during the last period. Our target now is to prepare all the players for the upcoming final,” Coach Sousa added.
Coach Helio Sousa stuck to his playing philosophy as he employed a different squad in each match of the tournament. “The tournament was a good tool to develop our full team players against top teams in the region. I have 28 players but the championship allowed only 23 players. I believe in this group and trust the players. All the players are working hard to do their best and to secure a place in the national team,” he said.
Sousa affirmed the team faced many challenges for the presence of the young and new players in the national team. “All the players are aware of this strategy and began with this from beginning. We will do our best to prepare well for the final match. Saudi Arabia have top players and they are the best in the Saudi league,” the Portuguese concluded.
Iraq’s coach, Katanec, on the other hand, affirmed his team delivered a top match against Bahrain. “We reached the Bahrain goal many times and we scored two goals. The opponent bounced back quickly as they netted the equaliser due to some technical mistakes in the defense area especially the second goal.
The Slovenian coach said in the post match press meet that the team had played six games within 20 days and the team suffered different injuries.
“Thanks to the players for their great efforts and contribution. They produced high performance in the tournament. The series of matches in a short period affected negatively on the players physically,” Strecko Katanec added.
The Iraq’s coach pointed out that there was no effect on the technical plan during the match. “The opponent managed the win in a penalty shootout. Iraq fans began the celebration from the beginning and prior to the tournament end.
In the football dictionary, we have to accept both the wins and the defeats. We have many young players and this tournament was a good platform for the players to develop well for the upcoming matches,” he concluded.
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