Muscat: The Oman national football team will take on UAE team in a friendly international match on Saturday in Abu Dhabi as part of the under way overseas camp. The preparatory game will start at 7:15 pm (Oman time) at Al Nahyan Stadium and will be open for the public and media. It will be the concluding warm-up game for both teams as they are gearing up for the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023.
Red Warriors finished their first preparatory fixture on a winning note after they blanked China 2-0 on December 29 in Abu Dhabi. Oman’s both goals were scored in the second half by Arshad al Alawi (49th minute) and Mohsin al Ghassani (65th minute) respectively.
On the other hand, Oman team players coached by Branko Ivankovic, are under way in the daily morning and evening training sessions to shape their readiness for the Asian assignment. Coach Ivankovic’s battalion will eye a different show in this edition of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 and reaching further in the knockout stage as Red Warriors had reached in last 16 round in the previous edition in the UAE.
On the other side, the friendly match against UAE on Saturday will determine the finalised starting list for Oman which will represent the nation in the upcoming major event. Following the warm-up game against UAE, the national team’s delegation will head off to Doha to take part in the 18th edition of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 which will be held from January 12 to February 10 in Doha city.
Red Warriors will commence their campaign in the forthcoming edition of the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023 as they will take on Saudi Arabia in the opener of Group F on January 16 at Khalifa International Stadium in Doha. Then, they will face a confident Southeast Asian team Thailand on January 21 at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium before concluding their group matches against Kyrgyzstan on January 25 in the same venue. The first two toppers will advance to the second stage beside the four teams who secured the best third place among the six groups. UAE will vie for a direct ticket to the knockout stage as they will compete in Group C besides Iran, Hong Kong and Palestine.
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