The U-23 players celebrate after beating Kazma.

KUWAIT CITY, Aug 2: Kuwait’s Olympic football team earned a 3-1 victory over Kazma in a friendly match at the sub-stadium of Al-Sadaqua and Al-Salam.

Abdulrahman Al-Rashidi opened the scoring for the Olympic side, while Khaled Al-Khurqawi netted twice to secure the win.

The Olympic team is scheduled to play a second friendly against Fahaheel this Thursday before departing next week to Thailand for a training camp, part of its final preparations for the upcoming AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers.

Kuwait will compete in Group B alongside Japan, Afghanistan, and host nation Myanmar. The qualifiers will be held from September 1 to 9, with the finals set to take place in Saudi Arabia in January.

On the other side, Kazma continues its buildup for the new Zain Premier League season, kicking off on September 12 with a match against Al-Salmiya.

Meanwhile, Kazma welcomed the arrival of their Algerian import Idris Shaibi, who joined team training on Sunday afternoon following his arrival in Kuwait.

By Hassan Mosa

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff