Kuwaiti players hold training session ahead of friendly.

DOHA, Sept 7: Kuwait will play its first friendly under new Portuguese head coach Hélio Sousa tonight when it meets Syria at 7:00 p.m. at Hamad bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha.

Sousa, appointed in August on a two-year contract to replace Argentine Juan Antonio Pizzi, has called up 26 players for the camp, including Saud Al-Hoshan, Khaled Al-Rashidi, Fahad Al-Hajri, Bader Tareq, Ahmad Al-Dhafiri, and Shabib Al-Khaldi.

The Blues have been training in Doha since late August, after shifting their camp from Indonesia. Sessions at Aspire Academy have combined fitness work with tactical drills to build cohesion ahead of a busy period. The team will also face Lebanon during the camp.

Kuwait’s focus is on the November 25 playoff against Mauritania at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, which will decide qualification for the Arab Cup starting in December. Preparations include another camp in the UAE in October and a final training period before the decisive clash.

Syria, meanwhile, continues its Asian Cup build-up. The Qasioun Eagles lost 3-1 to the UAE in a recent friendly and head into tonight’s match missing several key players. Striker Omar Khribin is absent due to club commitments with Al-Wahda, while Mardik Mardikian and Simon Amin are out injured. Pablo Sabbagh, Elmar Abraham, and Malek Jannir are also unavailable.

By Khaled Al-Enezi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff