MUSCAT: The Oman national football team is continuing its preparations for the 27th Gulf Cup, which will be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from September 23 to October 6.
The Oman team will head to Jeddah on Thursday and will enter several camps ahead of the opening clash with Iraq on September 23.
Tarik Sektioui is aiming to make a strong start to his first official assignment as head coach of Oman.
The Red Warriors are targeting their third Gulf Cup title after finishing runners-up at the previous two editions, in Basra in 2023 and Kuwait in 2024.
Oman have been drawn in Group A alongside hosts Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait.
They will face Iraq in their opening match, followed by Saudi Arabia on September 26, before concluding the group stage against Kuwait on September 29.
Sektioui has announced a 26-player squad for the tournament: Harib al Saadi, Khalid al Buraiki, Abdulmajeed al Balushi, Mohsin al Ghassani, Jameel al Yahmadi, Ahmed al Kaabi, Amjad al Harthi, Abdullah Fawaz, Zaher al Aghbari, Musab al Shaqsi, Ghanem al Habshi, Esam al Subhi, Nasser al Rawahi, Ahed al Mashaikhi, Sultan al Marzouq, Khalid al Ghatreifi, Abdulhafidh al Mukhaini, Turki Bait Rabie, Yousuf al Maliki, Hussein al Shahri, Al Harith al Mukhaini, Arshad al Alawi and Waleed al Musalmi.
The goalkeepers in the squad are Ibrahim al Mukhaini, Ahmed al Rawahi and Ibrahim al Rajhi.
The squad features several notable omissions, including Al Mundhir al Alawi, Abdulrahman al Mushaifri, Salah al Yahyai, Ahmed al Khamisi, Mohammed al Ghafri, Thani al Rushaidi and Abdulsalam al Shukaili.
Mohammed al Musallmi, Fayiz al Rushaidi and Ali al Busaidi are unavailable following their international retirements.
Sektioui has handed Gulf Cup call-ups to 11 players who will be making their debut in the competition: Waleed al Musallmi, Abdulmajeed al Balushi, Musab al Shaqsi, Nasser al Rawahi, Sultan al Marzouq, Khalid al Ghatreifi, Abdulhafidh al Mukhaini, Turki Bait Rabie, Yousuf al Maliki, Al Harith al Mukhaini and Ghanim al Habshi.
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