Kuwait, Australia in AFC Asian Cup 2015 opener Friday

Kuwait meets host Australia on Friday in the opening match of the competition at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.
The newly-appointed coach of Kuwait's national team Nabil Maaloul insists that team members are fully prepared for today's game although he only took charge of the team three weeks ago when they failed to perform well in the 22nd Gulf Cup held in Saudi Arabia last November.
In statements to reporters ahead of the game, the coach said that the players have quickly adapted to his way of training which was good. He thinks the players are very ready to play their first game against Australia today.
In today's game, Kuwait can't be underestimated as they showed in 2009 when they beat the Socceroos 1-0 in Canberra through a goal to defender Mesaed Neda, according to critics.
The Kuwaiti team have a good record against Australia with four wins, one draw and one loss from 10 internationals.
Kuwait is marked by playing on both two sides and the midfielders can cope with the appropriate way on the pitch according to the way of their rivals.
In the same group, Kuwait will meet South Korea on January 13 in Canberra and Oman on January 17 in Newcastle. Their problem might be with Oman, who crushed them 5-0 in November in the Gulf Cup.
About 16 teams will compete in the 23-day tournament which is expected to be seen by at least 800 million people from about 120 countries.
The tournament is held in Australia across five venues in Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Canberra and Melbourne from Jan 9-31.
Source: KUNA