Oman to meet Lebanon in WAFF U-23 opener

The Oman Olympic football team are all set to take part at the West Asian U-23 Championship which was officially inaugurated on Thursday in Saudi Arabia and will run until November 15.

The Oman team boys will open their campaign in the West Asian tournament with a match against Lebanon and it is scheduled on Sunday at Hall Stadium in Jeddah city. The match will begin at 17:00 while the other group match between Syria and hosts Saudi Arabia will take place on the same day at 21:00.

Oman are clubbed with Qatar and Lebanon in Group A while hosts Saudi Arabia headed Group B which also featured Bahrain and Syria teams.

Oman head coach Akram Habreesh affirmed in a press meet held recently that the team had several internal and abroad preparatory camps which featured friendly matches. “The warm-up gatherings shaped the players for the forthcoming assignments including the West Asian U-23 Championship. Also, during the camps the coaching staff finalised the right squad which will represent the team in different regional and continental events including this championship,” he said.

The national coach added in his statement that the second phase of the gathering camps focused on providing the proper technical development for the players. “This step was very crucial as we worked hard on each player to assist him growing towards right direction and to gain the desired skills. We gave an equal opportunity for the players to take part in different friendly encounters. These matches gave a proper idea on standing for each player’s technical performance. Also, it assists to determine the weakness and strength areas and to finalise the starting line-up. The target of team’s attendance in this Asian event is to compete for the title,” he ended.

The national Olympic (U-23) team had an aboard preparatory camp in the UAE in last September. The team had played two friendly matches against the UAE. Both matches ended in draws as the first preparatory encounter concluded at 1-1 while the second warm-up match finished at 2-2.

The external camp was part of the team’s forthcoming assignment including West Asian U-23 Championship in Saudi Arabia, GCC Gulf football Championship for U-23, AFC Asian U-23 qualifiers which acts as qualifiers for 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

The six participating teams were divided into two groups. The top two teams in each group will advance to the semifinals and the winners in semifinals will compete for the title while the losers will play the third and fourth play-off fixture.

On the opening day, Qatar took on Lebanon while Bahrain played against Syria. The semifinal fixtures are scheduled to take place on November 12 while the concluding match and third and fourth play-off match will be held on November 15.