Adil Al Balushi
Muscat, Oct 4
Oman national U-17 team is looking to post a second consecutive win in the AFC U-17 Asian Cup 2023 qualifiers as they will take on Bahrain in the second round. The match will kick off at 17:00 at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat.
In the following match of Group C, Iraq will face off Lebanon at the same venue and the game will start at 20:45.
The Oman boys started their campaign in the qualifiers on successful note as they edged Lebanon 2-1 in the opener on Sunday. Abdullah al Maqbali netted an early goal in the second minute to put the hosts in the lead while Lebanon’s Mohammed Yassen equalised for the visitors.
Omar al Jabri scored the winner in the dying minutes and delivered a crucial triumph for Oman.
In another match of the same group, Bahrain and Qatar settled for a 1-1 draw. Qatar are leading the table order with four points from two matches while Bahrain are in second position with the same credit. Oman are placed in third position with three points from one game. Iraq (one game) and Lebanon (two games) are placed in fourth and fifth places respectively with no points.
Oman have a perfect chance to go top in the group as a win in Wednesday’s game meant leading the group with two points difference from the second placed team. The triumph will get the team much closer to secure spot in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup.
Crucial win
Oman head coach Anwar al Habsi congratulated all for the victory in the opening match. “This victory was registered after a tough game. The first three points keep us in a good position and will encourage the team players to better show in the forthcoming matches. Thanks to all the players’ parents for their patience with us,” he added.
Al Habsi, who hails from Al Mudhaibi, clarified that the weakness in fitness side of the players was clear to everyone. “We worked hard to raise the physical side of the squad and improve the fitness. This was one of the focuses during the last camp in Saudi Arabia and during the friendly games,” he said.
Responding to an inquiry on the lack of scoring from the missing attempts, he said that the only solution for the missing attempts is raising the training sessions. “The team suffered six losses ahead of the qualifiers and it was not an easy task to relieve their pressure. We have missed some vital scorers in the front line including Al Harith al Mashakyie but we managed to reach to the opponent’s goal in different occasions,” he ended.
In earlier matches of the group on Saturday, Qatar managed to open the qualifiers with a crucial 2-1 win over Iraq while Bahrain edged Lebanon 1-0.
