DUBAI: The Gulf Cup has dished up some marvellous matches down the years. Here Ali Khaled looks back at three of the best.
KUWAIT 4-2 IRAQ, 1976 Gulf Cup, Doha
The two leading sides of Gulf football at the time had already drawn 2-2 in the round robin competition and needed a playoff to decide the champions. What followed was the Gulf Cup’s first truly great match.
Kuwait took an eighth-minute lead through Abdulaziz Al-Anbari, only for Iraq to equalize a minute later from header by Ahmad Sobhi. In a thrilling end-to-end match, Kuwait took a 3-1 lead into half-time thanks to Al-Anbari again and a superb free kick by goal machine Jassem Yaqoub. But back came Iraq again to half the deficit early in the second half with a long-range effort by Sobhi.
As Iraq threw everything at their rivals, Kuwait broke away in injury time and Al-Anbari completed his hat-trick amid chaotic scenes.
In time these two golden generations of players developed a fierce rivalry, and this was the match that started it all.
SAUDI ARABIA 2-2 UAE, 1988 Gulf Cup, Riyadh
Hosts Saudi Arabia were Asian Champions. The UAE were a rising team under Carlos Alberto Parreira and would incredibly go on to qualify to the 1990 World Cup a year later.
Both teams went into the match at King Fahd International Stadium hoping to win the group format competition for the first time.
What followed was one of the most exciting Gulf matches of all, as the UAE blew away their hosts in the first half. Abdulrahman Mohammed missed a penalty before the gifted young Emirati forward Zuhair Bakheet scored two late first-half goals.
Abdullah Ghurab scored on the hour for the Green Falcons and with only minutes remaining legendary Saudi Arabia forward Majed Abdullah broke UAE hearts with headed equalizer.
The draw did neither any favors as Iraq claimed the title, but rarely has the Gulf Cup been as exciting and noisy as it was that day.
UAE 2-1 IRAQ, 2013 Gulf Cup final, Manama
Only five months after excelling at the 2012 Olympics in London, the UAE were ready to stamp their authority on Gulf football. Mahdi Ali had been promoted to senior coach and he brought along with him a group of players he had overseen for years at various youth teams.
In the final, the golden boy of Emirati football, Omar Abdulrahman, came of age, scoring a superb solo goal to give the UAE the lead, and generally controlling the midfield.
With 10 minutes to go, Iraq captain Younis Mahmoud — hero of the 2007 AFC Asian Cup triumph — equalized to take the match into extra-time.
But the UAE would not to be denied as flying winger Ismail Al-Hammadi scored in the 107th minute to seal the country’s second Gulf Cup title.
The Emirates had their second golden generation, which would go on to finish third at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in Australia. And Abdulrahman would go on to become the continent’s best player.
