FOOTBALL – BAHRAIN enjoyed double celebrations last night after the kingdom’s senior men’s football national team qualified for the championship game of the 26th Gulf Cup in Kuwait, ringing in the new year in style.
Mohammed Jassim Marhoon fired in a 75th-minute winner to help lift the Bahrainis to a 1-0 victory over the hosts in their New Year’s Eve semi-final clash at Jaber International Stadium in the Kuwaiti capital.
The nationals had to play more than 40 minutes of regular time – and over 10 minutes of second-half injury time – a man down after forward Mahdi Abduljabbar was given his marching orders for a second bookable offence in the 52nd minute.
But Bahrain showed their resilience and fighting spirit and Marhoon came up with the heroics. He was later named the Player of the Match and was awarded with a trophy for his brilliance after the final whistle.
Bahrain will take on Oman in a hugely exciting final, scheduled to be played on Saturday night at the same venue. The Omanis punched their tickets with a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia in last night’s other game in the last four.
It will be the sixth time the Bahrainis will be in the title-decider in the competition’s history and they will be hoping to claim only their second-ever Gulf Cup title – adding to their lone triumph in the 2019 edition.
Oman, on the other hand, are in the final for the second straight time and sixth overall. They lost in the 2023 event to champions Iraq 2-3 after extra-time. They will be playing for their third crown, having last won in 2017-18 and for the first time in 2009.
Last night’s encounter lived up to the hype and Bahrain stepped up marvellously in front of a capacity crowd, predominantly made up of Kuwaiti fans.
Both defences held strong in the first half, with chances few and far between for both sides. Marhoon, however, had a great opportunity to put the Bahrainis ahead in the 35th minute but Kuwaiti defender Fahad Al Hajeri denied him a goal.
Marhoon sent a pass to teammate Mahdi Humaidan on the left of the box, and Humaidan’s effort was kept out by opposing goalkeeper Khaled Al Rashidi. The ball rebounded towards Marhoon in the face of goal, but his ensuing header was headed away by Al Hajeri, who was able to cover for his keeper on the goal line and preserve the nil-nil score line.
After the re-start, Marhoon once again threatened and his shot hit the crossbar in the 48th minute.
The Bahrainis then suffered a major blow when they were reduced to 10 men following Abduljabbar’s sending-off. He was given a second yellow card after also being booked in the first half, leaving the nationals with an uphill task for the remainder of the game.
But Bahrain never let up, maintaining their high intensity and outclassing their rivals. Their efforts were finally rewarded with a quarter-hour remaining with Marhoon’s goal, which came following a Komail Al Aswad free-kick from the right flank.
Al Rashidi had a slight touch and the ball came off the leg of Amine Benaddi but went unclaimed. In a mad scramble at the goal mouth, Marhoon was in the right place at the right time, sending the ball into an empty net with an off-balance shot.
Following a nerve-wracking VAR check, the goal stood, signalling the continuation of the jubilant celebrations from Bahrain’s travelling supporters.
Marhoon almost scored again with a brilliant free-kick in the 95th minute, but his powerful effort was punched away by Al Rashidi. The nationals held on from there for the win.
The tournament champions at the end of Saturday’s final will come away with a cool $1million in prize money, while the runners-up will pocket $750,000.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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