MUSCAT: The Oman national football team arrived in Doha late on Sunday to take on Somalia on Wednesday at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium for the Fifa Arab Cup Qatar 2025 qualifier.
Upon arrival, the team resumed their training sessions as head coach Carlos Queiroz and his assistant coaching staff focused on sharpening tactical cohesion, assessing player readiness and finalising match strategies. The technical staff continued to emphasise defensive organisation, fast transitions and attacking efficiency as the key themes that have shaped the team’s preparations throughout the international window.
Ahead of the team’s travel to Doha, the Oman team players completed their domestic camp on bright note as it included two preparatory matches. The first warm-up match ended for a 2-0 win over Sudan while a challenging 2-0 loss was suffered against Ivory Coast with the latter providing valuable insight into the team’s ability to compete against high-ranked opponents. These matches were instrumental in helping the coaching staff evaluate player form ahead of the qualifier.
Earlier on Sunday, Queiroz unveiled a 24-player squad. The Portuguese coach opted a balanced and competitive roster, choosing players who demonstrated strong form and readiness throughout the recent training sessions and international friendlies. Several notable absences were confirmed from the squad.
Forward Mohsin al Ghassani was unavailable due to his club commitment in Thailand, as the Arab Cup qualifiers do not fall within the official Fifa international match window. Meanwhile, Arshad al Alawi, Amjad al Harthy and Ahmed al Kaabi were ruled out due to injuries that have not fully healed, rendering them unfit for participation. Additionally, Khalid al Buraiki and Abdulrahman al Mushferi were unable to join the team due to visa complications related to their club in Czech Republic.
With preparations now in full swing in Doha, Oman’s focus is firmly on securing a positive result on Wednesday. A victory over Somalia would send the Red Warriors into the group stage of the Fifa Arab Cup, joining Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and the winner between Yemen and Comoros in an exciting yet demanding challenge that awaits the team should they advance.
The Red Warriors will be looking to capitalise on their recent cohesion and competitive training environment to show differently than the previous edition as Oman had reached the quarterfinals before bowing out to Tunisia in a closely contested 2-1 encounter.
SOMALIA EYE GOOD SHOW
On the other hand, Somalia will enter the qualifier under the guidance of national head coach Yusuf Ali Noor who was appointed as head coach since March. Coach Noor is a former Somalia international and his coaching resume included leading Dekedda SC to three consecutive Somali Premier League titles.
Since taking charge of the Somalia team, Noor has overseen major changes in squad selection, tactical identity and overall team performance. His impact became evident when Somalia claimed their first international victory in six years with a 2-1 win over Bahrain and followed by another 1-0 victory recently. Before these two wins, their last international triumph was in December 2019.
In the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Somalia played six matches under Noor as they had ended their match against Guinea with goalless draw, suffered a 2-0 loss against Botswana, a 3-0 defeat against Guinea, loss against Uganda by 2-0, another 3-0 loss against Algeria and by 1-0 defeat against Mozambique.
Somalia’s squad for the Arab Cup included 14 domestic-based players besides three professionals and six unattached players.
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