It will be the fourth meeting between the two sides since August, with Iraq winless in their previous three showdowns.

Bahrain defeated Srecko Katanec’s side 1-0 in the 2019 WAFF Championship final in August while their two meetings in the Asian Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023 ended in draws – 1-1 and 0-0.

Bahrain defeated Kuwait 4-2 in their final Group B match on Monday to advance to the last four stage, where they will meet Group A winners Iraq.

Both sides overcame difficult starts to advance to the semi-finals, with Saudi Arabia suffering a 3-1 defeat to Iraq and Qatar losing 2-1 to Iraq.

Qatar bounced back with wins over Yemen (6-0) and United Arab Emirates (4-2) to as Group A runners-up while Saudi Arabia topped Group B after defeating Bahrain (2-0) and defending champions Oman (3-1).

Bahrain beat Kuwait 4-2 to finish as Group B runners-up and will face Iraq in the semi-finals. Bahrain advanced on goal difference after they and Oman finished on four points.

Saudi Arabia's win meant they topped Group B and will face hosts Qatar in the other semi-final.

Qatar, however, finished second in Group A after Iraq drew 0-0 with Yemen to secure top spot on seven points. Qatar collected six points from their wins over Yemen and UAE, having lost 2-1 to Iraq in their opener.

Qatar will play Group B winners Saudi Arabia in the semi-finals on Thursday while Iraq will face Bahrain.

Saudi Arabia bounced back from their opening defeat against Kuwait to defeat Bahrain 2-0 as the race for Group B's semi-final spots will be decided on Monday.

Qatar bounced back from their 2-1 loss to Iraq with an emphatic 6-0 win over Yemen in the group's evening match.

The win confirmed Iraq's place in the semi-finals as they now top the group with six points while UAE and Qatar will face off on Monday to decide the second team to advance to the last four stage.