Jordan players celebrate after scoring a goal.
Doha, Qatar: Jordan secured their place in the knockout stage of the FIFA Arab Cup 2025 with a convincing 3-1 victory over Kuwait in their Group C clash yesterday.
The win took Jamal Sellami’s side to six points, ensuring a top-two finish in the group regardless of the results of the remaining fixtures.
“The team has high ambitions to go far in this tournament. We will manage player rest in the upcoming match against Egypt to cope with fatigue from the demanding schedule,” said Sellami.
“We entered the match against Kuwait with great focus and seriousness, aiming to secure the three points, which the team achieved with a strong performance.”
Jordan got into their rhythm early on with Mohannad Abutaha denied by a great Rashed Aldousari sliding challenge before Nizar Alrashdan headed wide with Kuwait’s goalmouth gaping.
Abutaha then fired Jordan into the lead in the 17th minute when the defender latched onto a quickly taken free-kick to rifle an unstoppable shot from 25 yards into the top corner beyond Sulaiman Abdulghafoor.
Mahmoud Almardi was close to doubling Jordan’s lead two minutes later when he crashed an effort against the bar after Yazan Alnaimat’s initial strike following a mazy dribble was tipped away by Abdulghafoor.
Jordan kept the pressure on after the interval, doubling their lead in the 49th minute when Saed Alrosan lashed home following a weak Kuwait clearance from a corner delivery.
Kuwait looked to have conceded a third four minutes later when Ali Olwan sidefooted home a rebound after Amer Jamous’ header was blocked by Athbi Shebab but it was ruled out for offside following a VAR review.
Yousef Nasser pulled a goal back for Kuwait in the 84th minute with a well-taken header but in their push for the equaliser, left gaps at the back which led to Olwan converting a penalty in seventh minute of stoppage time to seal the win for Jordan.
