Saudi Arabia deserved Kuwait victory, says coach Helio Sousa

Kuwait manager Helio Sousa says Saudi Arabia deserved their 1-0 victory in the opening round of the Gulf Cup in Saudi Arabia.

Mohamed Kanno scored the only goal as Saudi Arabia began their Group A campaign with a narrow win over Kuwait.

“Saudi Arabia were simply the stronger side,” Portuguese coach Sousa told reporters. “We have different ideas, and some of our players are still discovering this level. They will improve day by day and learn from their older team-mates.”

Sousa said he was more concerned with helping Kuwait develop than focusing on the immediate result.

“I am not thinking too much about the result at the moment,” he said. “I am thinking about the experience and the time that will make the Kuwait national team better.

“The Saudi national team have much greater experience because of their repeated participation in the World Cups, while our team does not have that experience.”

The Kuwait manager also highlighted the physical and mental demands involved in applying pressure high up the pitch.

“If you want to put pressure on your opponent, you have to press them in their own areas,” he said. “That requires physical effort first and foremost, followed by mental concentration. That is what we are working to build and establish within the team.”

Sousa added that Kuwait could become difficult to play against if his players were able to carry out those instructions consistently.

“If we can apply that, it will be difficult for our opponents to match us,” he said. “But it was difficult for us to continue delivering what we had planned throughout the matches.”

The Gulf Cup is being held in Saudi Arabia from 24 September to 6 October.

Saudi Arabia’s victory over Kuwait was the first Group A result, while Iraq and Oman drew 1-1 in the other opening-round fixture.

The first-round matches in Group B take place on Thursday. The United Arab Emirates face Yemen, while Bahrain play Qatar.