Basrah, Iraq: Bruno Pinheiro, coach of the Qatari national team, expressed his happiness after Al-Annabi opened their 25th Gulf Cup campaign with a 2-0 win over Kuwait, in their Group B first round game at Al Minaa Stadium in Basra. One of the two debutants for Qatar in the match, Amro Siraj handed his team the lead with a superb strike in 23rd minute before Ahmed Alaaeldin scored from the spot in 38th minute to seal victory. The three-time champions then held on to their lead well to take three points and top place in Group B ahead of defending champions Bahrain, who defeated the UAE 2-1 in first match of the group. Speaking at the press conference after the match, Bruno said: “The beginning of the match was difficult; the Kuwaiti team was seeking to put pressure on us, but after that we succeeded in controlling the game and we took the lead. This gave us confidence to perform well in the game.”   Regarding the importance of this victory for the young players in the squad, the Al-Annabi coach said: “The victory is important for these players, some of whom are participating in the Gulf Cup for the first time, and we know the value of the tournament and therefore we worked to provide our best. I think it’s also important for these players as a boost to do better in such tournaments.”   “We will now shift focus on the match against Bahrain and we look to bag full points against them,” he added before thanking fans for their support. He added: “We faced some difficulties during this game, but we overcame them and succeeded in maintaining the scoreline. We hope that the result will have a great impact on our journey in this tournament.”   “We take each match separately, so after winning the first match, we must then think about the second match, against Bahrain. We must work to keep pressure away from the players by focusing on each match, working to achieve the best result by performing at the required level.” Portuguese Bruno Pinheiro, who replaced Felix Sanchez ahead of the tournament, must be a happy man bagging victory in his first match as Qatar national coach with youngsters displaying a good show. Tamim Mansour – son of Qatar and Al Rayyan legend Mansour Muftah – was the other player to make Qatar debut