Saudi Arabia with a perfect record: they beat Iraq with a brace and complicated their situation at Gulf Cup 27

Saudi Arabia maintained their perfect record with victory over Iraq, tightening their grip on the 27th edition of the Arabian Gulf Cup, "Gulf 27".

The Saudis beat Iraq 2-0 today, Tuesday, at Al-Inma Stadium in Jeddah, in the third and final round of the group stage.

Abdullah Al-Salem broke the deadlock in the 54th minute, pouncing on a dropped ball from Iraq goalkeeper Ahmed Basil to turn it into an empty net.

Twelve minutes later, Abdullah Al-Hamdan doubled the lead. He raced clear on Ahmed Basil's goal and drilled a low left-footed shot the Iraqi keeper could not keep out.

Those goals sealed top spot in Group One for Saudi Arabia with a flawless record of nine points, following wins over Kuwait, Oman and Iraq.

Iraq, by contrast, now face a nerve-shredding scenario. Their tally stopped at four points, leaving them second in the group and level with Oman, who ran out thrilling 3-1 winners over Kuwait.

Everything separating Iraq and Oman is identical. Press reports confirm a draw will decide which of them joins Saudi Arabia in the semi-finals.

Both qualified teams must wait to learn their semi-final opponents until tomorrow's Group Two fixtures are done, with Qatar facing the UAE and Yemen taking on Bahrain.

قووووول! الهدف الأول لمنتخبنا الوطني سجله اللاعب عبدالله السالم - السعودية 1 - العراق 0 #السعودية_العراق#الرياضية_السعودية | #خليجي_الديار_العربية27 pic.twitter.com/TDn0KlZ3Yb — القنوات الرياضية السعودية (@riyadiyatv) September 29, 2026

قووووول! الهدف الثاني لمنتخبنا الوطني سجله اللاعب عبدالله الحمدان - السعودية 2 - العراق 0 #السعودية_العراق#الرياضية_السعودية | #خليجي_الديار_العربية27 pic.twitter.com/9GNy3WmgNd — القنوات الرياضية السعودية (@riyadiyatv) September 29, 2026