A Kuwaiti player is congratulated by his teammates after scoring a goal.

BANGKOK, Nov 25: Kuwait’s U-17 soccer team will take on Mongolia at 2:00 p.m. today at Chonburi Stadium in Thailand, in the second round of Group F of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualifiers. At the same kickoff time, hosts Thailand will face the Maldives in the same group.

Kuwait opened its campaign with a hard-earned 1–0 victory over Turkmenistan last Saturday in the first round.

Kuwait did not feature in the second-round fixtures held the day before yesterday. Those matches saw Turkmenistan thrash the Maldives 6–0, while Thailand cruised to a 4–0 win over Mongolia.

Despite Mongolia’s defeat in the previous round, the team still sits on three points thanks to its opening 1–0 win over the Maldives.

Kuwait will look to claim a second straight victory and strengthen its push for the group’s lone qualification spot to the finals, scheduled to be hosted in Saudi Arabia next year.

Only the top team from each of the seven groups will advance to the finals. The Kuwaiti U-17 side hopes to book its sixth appearance in the tournament, ending a long absence since 2014.

By Hassan Mosa

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff