Kuwaiti and Egyptian players in action

DOHA, Dec 2: Kuwait opened its Arab Cup campaign with a valuable point after holding Egypt to a 1-1 draw on Tuesday night at Lusail Stadium in Qatar, in the first round of Group C matches.

Fahad Al-Hajri put Al-Azraq ahead in the 64th minute, before Mohamed Afsha leveled for Egypt from the penalty spot in the 88th.

Helio Sousa made several adjustments to the Kuwaiti lineup compared to the playoff win over Mauritania, handing starting roles to Saud Al-Hoshan, Al-Hajri, Abdulwahab Al-Owadhi, Sultan Al-Enzi, Fawaz Ayed, and Youssef Majed, while dropping Khaled Al-Rashidi, Rashed Al-Dosari, Hassan Hamdan, Redha Hani, Athbi Shahab, and Eid Al-Rashidi.

Egypt took control from the opening whistle, seeking an early breakthrough and pressing Kuwait deep in their own half.

Al-Hoshan pushed away Ghanem Mohamed’s shot inside the first minute, then collected a header from Mohamed Elneny (4’). Yassin Marai headed narrowly wide (6’), while Rajab Nabil sent another header over the bar (14’).

Kuwait’s first chance came when Yousef Nasser fired over from a promising position (20’).

Egypt won a penalty after Al-Owadhi tripped Islam Issa, but captain Amr Al-Sulaya wasted it by sending his effort wide (38’). Daham tried his luck from distance without success (40’), and Al-Hoshan denied Elneny once more just before halftime.

The second half followed a similar pattern early on, with Egypt pushing forward but failing to beat Kuwait’s compact defense and alert goalkeeper. Sousa then refreshed his side by introducing Rashed Al-Dosari, Nasser Falih, and Eid Al-Rashidi.

The changes sparked Kuwait into life, allowing them to grow into the match. Al-Hajri broke the deadlock with a well-placed header (64’), and Daham came close to a second after excellent work from Falih, only to shoot straight at the keeper (81’).

But a late mistake proved costly. Al-Hoshan brought down substitute Marwan Hamdy inside the box, earning a second yellow card as Norwegian referee Eskas Espen pointed to the spot. Afsha converted confidently to rescue a draw for the Pharaohs (88’).

By Khaled Al-Enezi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff