MUSCAT, Feb 6 - After completion of the national team’s participation at AFC Asian Cup and reaching to the last 16, the Omani domestic football season gets to its business end with the commencement of the second phase and the 14th week of the Omantel League on Thursday.
In the 14th round, Muscat will clash with Mirbat at Seeb Stadium while Al Suwaiq will take on Al Shabab at same venue. Sur will travel to Al Buraimi to face Al Nahdha. In other matches of this round and that will take place on Friday.
Al Oruba, meanwhile, will meet Oman at Sur Sports Complex while the neighbours Sohar and Majees will be in a tight clash at Sohar Sports Complex. League leaders Dhofar will take on Saham at Salalah Sports Complex. The last match of the round will be held on Saturday between Al Nasr and Al Rustaq at Salalah Sports Complex.
Muscat vs Mirbat
Third-placed Muscat (23 points) and fifth-placed Mirbat are separated by only two points.
The capital city club, Muscat, will be keen to capture winning points and get closer to the top teams in the league table. Muscat have advantage in today’s match with the fan support and home conditions factors to grab the victory and vie for the top. On the other side, Mirbat which is headed by Romanian coach Alex, want to rekindle the memories of first leg match when it finished in favour of Mirbat by 3-1.
Al Nahdha vs Sur
Al Buraimi’s representative in the league, Al Nahdha, will fight to register the victory against Sur to reduce the gap with league leaders Dhofar. Both teams will look for better results than the draw in the first leg. Omani coach of Al Nahda, Khalifa al Mazahmi will look to increase the credit as they have currently 26 points from 13 games while Sur, who are 11th placed in the league, have 13 points from the same number of matches.
Al Shabab vs Al Suwaiq
Al Shabab will enter the second phase of league with new faces in the team. The club signed new contracts with Brazilian player Jaja, and his team-mate Naldo, Omar Jenyat and local players including Ahmed al Quraini, Abdulrahman al Mushaifri and Fahad Naseeb. Al Shabab are positioned currently at relegation zone where the management of team is looking forward to open new chapter from second phase of the league. They have 9 points from 13 games.
The ninth-placed Al Suwaiq have 15 points from 13 games. Both teams and especially Al Shabab would want to avoid a draw or defeat as they are at the bottom of the table. A victory is all that Al Shabab want from the match.
On the other hand, Al Oruba will try their best to come out with three points and reach to 22 points and be in a better position on the table when they take on Oman Club which is struggling in danger zone with 10 points at 12th place.
Sohar , who are the team from South Al Batinah, would be keen to end the match with three points and be closer with top positioned teams as they meet their neighbours Majees who are at the bottom of the league order with eight points only.
DHOFAR AIM TO STRETCH LEAD
Dhofar will look to extend their lead on top when they take on Saham at the Salalah sports Complex on Friday. The Salalah giants are still basking in the glory of the OFA Cup triumph after beating Al Shabab in the final match. That achievement is a positive push for the team in the remaining matches of league.
The champions of OFA Cup, who are headed by Egyptian coach Mohammed al Abdulazeem, will be keen to capture a victory and stamp the team’s domination on the top spot of the table. Dhofar are leading with 35 points from 13 games.
Former champions Saham will not be an easy opponents as they are looking to raise their credit and reach to 20 points at the middle table of league. Saham players have prepared well during the break.
Al Rustaq will also be keen for three points to better their position while Al Nasr, with 22 points at fourth place, also look to get more closer to the leaders Dhofar and second-placed Al Nahda.
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