Muscat: The new footballing season 2022-23 will commence on Thursday with three fixtures to take place in the opening round. Defending champions Seeb, who were recently crowned champions of Super Cup, will begin their campaign in defending league title with a match against new arrivals Al Bashayer club at Seeb Sports Stadium. The match will start at 17:55.
The new arrival to the top-tier league, Sur, will meet Al Musannah. The match will kick off at 17:45 at Sur Sports Complex. In the same venue, the First Division league champions Al Oruba will meet Al Suwaiq. The match will begin at 20:30.
Seeb are expected to begin the league matches in style as they powered with the triumph of maiden Super Cup. The team is under new coaching staff led by Romanian Ilie Stan. Abdulaziz al Maqbali and his team-mates are in good shape after they went through good preparation for the new season.
The opponents Al Bashayer, who will made their debut at the top-flight league, will try not be an easy guests this season. The Al Dakhiliyah Governorate club aims for a different show in this season despite their tough clash against Seeb in the opener.
Al Oruba will be seeking for the first victory as they will meet a tough guests represented by Al Suwaiq. Sur-based team will look for recording a strong start as the team was away from Omantel League during couple of years. Ahmed Kanu, Serbian striker Ivan Subert and Manuchho from Ivory Coast are the key players for Croatian coach Moryan Zefokovetc. Al Suwaiq, on the other hand, will target for the desired three points in the opener and eye on delivering a better show than the previous season as they had ended in ninth place with 31 points.
Sur will chase for a positive start in the league after their absence in top-tier league for few seasons. Nigerian player Etor will be one of the key player for the team in their game against Al Musannah. The Southern Batinah team will look for a better performance this season and will target to snatch the winning points from Sur in the initial round.
The remaining encounters of the first round will continue on Friday and Saturday. The runners-up Al Nahdha will have a strong clash against Dhofar on Friday at the former's home in Al Buraimi Sports Complex.
Bahla will chase a strong start as well as Al Rustaq when they face off each other in a tight game at Nizwa Sports Complex. Muscat-based Oman club and Al Ittihad will eye for a positive beginning in the league as they will meet on Saturday at Al Saada Sports Complex. Sohar Sports Complex will host the clash between Al Nasr and Sohar.
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