FOOTBALL – Bahrain’s junior men’s football national team are back in action today in the AFC U20 Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers.
The kingdom is hosting Group D of qualification, with Bahrain set to place Jordan in their second of three assignments.
The match is scheduled for an 8.30pm kick-off at Khalifa Sports City Stadium in Isa Town.
It will be preceded by Afghanistan taking on Tajikistan at 5pm at the same venue.
Both Bahrain and Jordan won their opening fixtures earlier this week – with the nationals beating their Tajikistan counterparts 3-2 and the Jordanians ousting their Afghan opponents 1-0.
A win for either team will be a major boost in their hopes of qualifying for next year’s AFC U20 Asian Cup.
Following this evening’s games, the third and final matchday in Group D of qualifying will be held on Sunday.
Jordan take on Tajikistan at 5pm and Bahrain wrap up their campaign against Afghanistan at 8.30pm.
Bahrain are one of 32 junior men’s squads in the qualifiers.
The field has been divided into eight groups of four, with each being held at a centralised location.
Following a single round-robin, the eight group winners and seven best second-placers will punch their tickets to next year’s AFC U20 Asian Cup.
The nationals, coached by former national team star Ali Aamer, have 23 players on their team list for qualifying.
Their players include Ali Mahran, who spearheaded the Bahrainis in their win against Tajikistan with a hat-trick, skipper Khaled Alkhalaf, Hussain Zuhair, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaie, Amjad Jaafar, Khaled Ahmed, Bader Hussain, Mubarak Fawaz, Mohammed Salah, Khaled Alkhaldi, Adam Fareed, Jassim Qasem, Abdulrahman Bassam, Karrar Huwaida, Ahmed Nasser, Ahmed Almuraisi, Komail Alsitrawi, Abdulla Osama, Ali Hussain, Mohammed Aljazzaf, and goalkeepers Abdulla Ahmed, Hassan Albastaki, and Hussain Ebrahim.