Nashat Akram, the Iraq national team legend, has questioned whether Saudi Arabia deserved their victory over their Kuwaiti brothers in the opening round of the Arabian Gulf Cup "Gulf 27".
Saudi Arabia snatched a precious 1-0 win over their Kuwaiti guests on Wednesday evening at the Al-Inma Stadium in Jeddah, in the first round of Group One.
Friendly fire settled it. Kuwait defender Yousef Al-Haqan headed a Hammam Al-Hammami cross into his own net by mistake in the 73rd minute.
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Speaking to Qatari channel "Al-Kass" after the match, Akram said: "The Kuwait national team put in a competitive performance, they were fierce and organised, especially going forward, while Saudi Arabia posed no real danger inside the penalty area."
He added: "Were it not for the defensive error that led to the only goal, Saudi Arabia would not have scored, even if the match were replayed two or three times."
"Saudi Arabia are one of the entertaining teams, but they cannot create a goalscoring chance or reach the goal," Akram continued.
He rounded off his verdict: "This match was stronger than the first match in the group (Iraq and Oman), but I believe a draw would have been the fair result."
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