MUSCAT: Oman’s national under-20 football team concluded their domestic training camp on Monday as head coach Hamad al Azzani and his technical staff shift their focus towards the final preparations for the AFC U20 Asian Cup China 2027 Qualifiers in Doha.
The camp, which ran from August 6 to 17, included two international friendly matches against Syria and represented one of the final stages of Oman’s preparation programme before the continental assignment.
The young Red Warriors ended their friendly programme with a 2-1 defeat to Syria in the second encounter on Sunday. The result followed a 1-1 draw between the two sides in their opening friendly three days earlier in Muscat.
Despite the second-match result, the two encounters gave the coaching staff valuable competitive minutes and another opportunity to assess the squad against international opposition at a crucial point in the preparations.
With the qualifiers now only two weeks away, the emphasis turns towards fine-tuning the squad, improving tactical organisation and ensuring the players are ready for three matches in the space of seven days.
The current camp featured 26 players selected by al Azzani as the coaching staff continued the process of narrowing down their options ahead of the trip to Qatar.
Oman’s preparations have been built around a series of domestic and overseas camps over recent months, with the technical staff using friendly matches to evaluate players and develop the team’s technical and tactical approach.
The Syria double-header provided the latest international test. The opening meeting at the Royal Court Affairs Stadium finished 1-1, before Syria edged the second encounter 2-1 on Sunday.
Attention will now turn fully to Group E of the AFC U20 Asian Cup China 2027 Qualifiers, where Oman will face hosts Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong, China in Doha.
The young Red Warriors will begin their campaign against Qatar on August 31 at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium before facing Saudi Arabia on September 3 at Hamad bin Khalifa Stadium. Their final group fixture against Hong Kong, China will take place on September 6.
The coming days will therefore form the final phase of Oman’s build-up, with Al Azzani and his staff expected to use the remaining period to settle on the squad and sharpen the areas identified during the latest camp.
After months of preparation and a lengthy programme of training camps and friendly matches, the focus now moves from experimentation towards delivering the required performance when the continental qualifiers get under way in Doha.
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