Gulf Cup semi-finals: Oman, Iraq, Bahrain and UAE qualify

The group stages of the Gulf Cup have drawn to a close with two highly entertaining afternoons of football on the trot seeing late drama and plenty of leapfrogging in both tables. 

After the opening three games for each side, we have both the names of our semi-finalists and who they will play as the semi-finals kick off on the 2nd of January 2018 with times to be confirmed. 

Oman

They left it late against Saudi Arabia but two second half goals frm substitue Said Salim sealed their win and passage into the knockout stages. They scraped by Kuwait, Group A's basement dwellers, and were beaten by UAE but looked good against an admittedly weakened Saudi Arabia. They will play Bahrain in the semi-final

UAE

The UAE could be surprise package at the Gulf Cup. They beat Oman in the first game but drew with Saudi Arabia and Kuwait after that in two 0-0 draws. They've only scored one goal and haven' conceded yet. They play the best team in the tournament so far in the semi-final in Iraq and we will get a proper look at how good they really are.

Iraq

Iraq have to be the best team in the tournament so far. Despite drawing with Bahrain, who have since proven that defensive organisation is one of their strengths, they beat a competitive Qatar side and hammered Yemen in the final game of the group. Managed by Basim Qasim, an Iraqi legend who played at the 1986 World Cup for his country, they are the team to beat as we reach the final four.

Bahrain

Never flashy but never out of the game given their ability to defend and keep games close, Bahrain will be hard to beat. They proved against Qatar that despite going a goal down, they can still attack when necessary.