Oman eye to secure winning start against Vietnam

MUSCAT: The Oman beach soccer team is all set to commence their Asian campaign at AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup Thailand 2025. The national team players will meet Vietnam in the Group D opener on Friday. The match will start at 2 pm (Oman Time) at Jomtien Beach Arena in Pattaya, Thailand. In the same group, Bahrain will take on Malaysia.

Oman's long-serving coach, Talib Hilal, will aim to secure a winning start and get much closer to book spot in the quarterfinals. In their eighth Asian appearance, Oman team players will target to rekindle their memories of 2015 as the team was crowned champions of the AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup. Furthermore, Oman were also silver medallists at the Asian Beach Soccer Cup in 2011 besides winning bronze medals in 2009 and 2019. Under technical guidance of coach Talib, the national team won a gold medal in the Asian Beach Games in 2008. Oman had reached Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup five times in history.

Oman coach Talib Hilal with the players during training.

Ahead of the opening match in the Asian Cup, Oman stunned hosts Thailand 7-2 in a friendly match as part of the team’s short external camp in Thailand. Oman team delegation arrived in Pattaya few days in advance of the tournament. Khalid al Oraimi, Abdullah al Souti, Sami al Balushi, Yahya al Murkhi and Mashal al Oraimi netted Oman’s goals in the warm-up match against Thailand.

Oman’s squad selected by coach Talib is one of the strong squads as majority of the players are playing together since the last few years. Hence, the harmony and technical understanding among the players reached to its perfect level.

Oman are very eager to secure a place in the Fifa Beach Soccer World Cup in Seychelles as the Asian showpiece will also offer three tickets to the global stage in May.

Oman players during a practice session.

On the other hand, Vietnam head coach Mai Van Duc affirmed to AFC website that the team currently is following a set plan. “The squad has been selected after extensive training sessions and several friendly matches. The team will look to make their mark as the weeks of meticulous preparation will yield positive results. We have spent time perfecting the strengths of each player, from their technical game to their psychological resilience,” said Van Duc.

“We have been placed in a group with several strong teams. Oman is a good team and has experience in the World Cup, but we also have our own plan. We will try to make things difficult for them and capitalise on our opportunities to win and qualify for the next round,” he added.