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What: 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifier (Round Three)
When: Tuesday, October 15th, 2024
Where: Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Al-Sadd, Doha, Qatar
Kickoff: 7 PM Jerusalem Time
Streams/TV: Subscribe to Football Palestine on Substack to receive a streaming link to your inbox one hour before kickoff.
Previous Encounters:
18.01.2021 // Friendly // Kuwait 0:1 Palestine
11.05.2018 // Friendly // Kuwait 2:0 Palestine
21.03.2013 //Friendly// Kuwait 2:1 Palestine
08.12.2012 //2012 WAFF// Kuwait 2:1 Palestine
25.06.2012 //2012 Arab Cup// Kuwait 2:0 Palestine
22.12.2011 // 2011 Pan Arab Games// Kuwait 3:0 Palestine (AET)
08.10.2003 // 2004 ACQ // Kuwait 4:0 Palestine
05.10.2003 // 2004 ACQ // Kuwait 2:1 Palestine
25.12.2002 // 2002 Arab Cup // Kuwait 3:3 Palestine
A Tie with Historical Significance
If you have ever watched a football match in Arabic featuring two Arab nations the term “brotherly” gets thrown around alot. So much so, that it has lost much of its meaning. For all the supposed “brotherly love” between nations in the region there has been some notable fraternal fissures.
Palestine was not given a helping hand by Jordan at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup in spite of the latter already securing qualification to the final round. Three years earlier, in qualification for the U20 Asian Cup- UAE scored two late goals against Palestine to win 5-0 and knock Palestine out of one of the best runner up spots on goal differential.
In the case of Kuwait there is something of a bond between the two teams in a footballing sense. Long before FIFA allowed Palestine to join it was Kuwait flying the flag for Palestine- ensuring Israel got kicked out of the AFC and even preventing them from joining UEFA.
Sheikh Fahad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Kuwait’s FA President who presided over Kuwait’s AFC Asian Cup win in 1980 and their qualification to the World Cup two years later was an outspoken supporter of the Palestinian cause. In spite of his royal background the Kuwaiti Prince served in a battalion in the Six Day War and was arrested four years later engaging in guerilla activities against the Israeli Army in Lebanon.
Tuesday night’s encounter between Al-Fida’i and Al-Azraq is the first World Cup qualifier between the two sides and should be treated as an opportunity to honour Sheikh Fahad who was martyred during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait aged 44.
Revisiting a Classic
The first encounter between Kuwait and Palestine came at the 2002 Arab Cup and what a game it was! A 3-3 draw did neither side any good as both failed to get out of the group. In spite of the negative result (Palestine threw away a 3-1 lead) fans of a certain age will remember this match fondly as the coming out party for a generation that blended the diaspora (Roberto Kettlun, Pablo Abdala, and Roberto Bishara) with the talents developed at home (Ramzi Saleh, Ziyad Al-Kord, Saeb Jendeya)
Kuwait in Crisis
Since their suspension from FIFA in late 2015- Kuwait has lurched from one crisis to the next. Al-Azraq used to be a regional giant. Before suspension, Kuwait had missed out on only two Asian Cup Finals (1992, 2007)- they missed out on just as many since.
Even as the rest of the continent caught up, Kuwait maintained its status as a top Arab team winning the WAFF Championship and Gulf Cup in 2010.
Kuwait were handed a straightforward group in Round 2 but their path to Round 3 was fraught with drama. Kuwait lost to India at home and only beat Afghanistan (with the majority of players on strike for their first encounter). Some serious refereeing chicanery on the final match day got Kuwait over the line but that was not enough to save Rui Bento’s job. The process was not trusted and the team was handed to Juan Antonio Pizzi with the hopes that the team could be transformed into one capable of qualifying for Round 4.
Pizzi’s squad selection reflected that short term thinking and the members of the lost generation (who were in their early twenties when FIFA suspended Kuwait) continued to be relied on. Pizzi found a way to eke out results on the two matchdays but nothing suggests he is any better or worse than his Portuguese predecessor. Kuwait struggle to score goals and will need to find their scoring boots in order to layer wins on top of the two points collected from Jordan and Iraq in the first window.
The fact that Jordan did not press and Iraq could not press (Rebin Sulaka was sent off in the first five minutes) papered over the cracks in Pizzi’s side. Oman blew a crater through Kuwait’s defensive block and mental confidence by beating Al-Azraq 4-0. The statistics might even flatter Kuwait who did not even put the ball in Oman’s box until 32:40 and after two goals had been scored by Oman.
The direction Kuwait takes for the rest of the qualification campaign will largely be determined by the result of Tuesday’s match. A loss and a new board (the old one stepped down after their incompetence put the lives of fans at risk during the Iraq match last month) might tell Pizzi to take the remaining six games to build a new team. A whopping seven starters were over the age of 31. Pizzi also brought on two 32 year olds in the second half to stem the bleeding.
As dire as things seem for Kuwait, a matchup between two Arab teams means anything can happen. The team would do well to remember how their 2022 World Cup qualification campaign came to a crashing halt against a limited Yemen side in a match that boasted the attacking talents of prime Saleh Chihadeh, Mahmoud Wadi, and Nazmi Albadawi.
Winning Time
There is no other way to put it for Palestine. A win gives them life- one that might even see them still fight for a direct qualifying slot. A loss might not end their hopes but it does start a game of mental gymnastics.
Palestine cannot hang their hat on a fighting second half performance in a loss vs. Iraq nor does a point against Korea on Match Day 1 mean anything if Palestine cannot win the games they’re supposed to win.
A move away from the 4-4-2 might help Palestine find the attacking fluidity they have been looking for. Even if Daboub sticks with the same shape- it is important he makes the right calls to ensure the employed personnel can inflict maximum damage against a vulnerable Kuwaiti side.
Palestine will also have to maintain focus and avoid stupid yellow cards. Oman away- another game where Palestine will fancy picking up points- is up next and they can ill afford losing Camilo Saldaña, Tamer Seyam, Amid Mahajna, Odai Kharoub or Yaser Hamed for that encounter.
In Palestine’s favour is the fact that they have taken care of business before. Getting the results they needed to get against UAE, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, and Lebanon in the last year. The return of vice captains Tamer Seyam and Rami Hamadi (who were also joined by Mohammed Saleh and Jonathan Cantillana in training) should be a massive boost to the side’s confidence in a must win match.
Predicted Palestine Starting XI (4-4-2): Rami Hamadi; Musab Al-Battat, Amid Mahajna, Yaser Hamed Mayor, Camilo Saldaña; Mahmoud Abu Warda, Odai Kharoub, Mohammed Rashid, Tamer Seyam; Oday Dabbagh, Wessam Abou Ali
Predicted Kuwait Starting XI (5-4-1): Sulaiman Abdulghafoor; Sami Al-Sanea, Fahed Al-Hajeri, Khaled Ibrahim, Sultan Al-Enezi, Meshari Ghannam; Faisal Al-Harbi, Reda Hani, Ahmed Al-Dheferi, Mohammed Daham; Yousef Nasser
