Sousa shares the pitch with Youssef Nasser and Fawaz Ayed

KUWAIT CITY, Sept 30: Kuwait’s senior soccer team continues preparations at the Friendship and Peace Stadium under Portuguese coach Helio Sousa, who has named a 26-man squad for an overseas training camp running until October 15. The team is scheduled to play two matches, with opponents yet to be confirmed

The first training session featured 19 players. Four Qadsia players—Khalid Ibrahim, Khalid Sabah, Rashid Al-Dosari, and Athbi Shahab—missed the session as they traveled to Iraq to join Qadsia in its Gulf Champions League match against Zakho. Saud Al-Hoshan and Ahmed Al-Zanki were absent due to personal reasons, while Fahad Al-Hajri sat out due to minor health issues.

The full 26-man squad includes Saud Al-Janai, Khalid Al-Rashidi, Saud Al-Hoshan, Abdulrahman Ajaj, Fahad Al-Hajri, Mishari Ghanem, Khalid Sabah, Mohammed Khalid, Rashid Al-Dosari, Khalid Ibrahim, Abdulwahab Al-Awadi, Nasser Khidr, Hasan Hamdan, Khalid Al-Murshid, Mahdi Dashti, Redha Hani, Ahmed Al-Dhafiri, Athbi Shahab, Sultan Al-Anzi, Fawaz Ayed, Badr Tareq, Talal Al-Qaisi, Youssef Nasser, Moath Al-Osaimi, Salman Al-Awadi, and Ahmed Al-Zanki.

Dr. Abdulmajeed Albannai, head of the Kuwait Football Association’s medical committee, confirmed that some absences are due to injuries. Mohammed Daham is sidelined with a leg injury requiring two weeks of recovery, while Eid Al-Rashidi is recovering from a second-degree muscle tear. Eid has been undergoing treatment in Dubai and will continue to be monitored by the national team medical staff; he is expected to need four weeks to fully recover.

Albannai also revealed that Mubarak Al-Fanini is dealing with a serious leg contusion and requires a dedicated rehabilitation program to regain full fitness.

Additionally, Jassim Al-Mutairi, Shabeeb Al-Khaldi, and Youssef Majid are recovering from injuries under the supervision of their clubs, with ongoing monitoring by the national team’s medical staff.

By Khaled Al-Enezi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff