Oman edge Egypt to enter final

Haridev Pushparaj -

Muscat, jan. 26 -

In an epic encounter that will be remembered for ages, Oman produced a sensational 4-1 victory on penalties over a highly competent Egypt side to storm into the final of the 2nd CISM World Cup football championship at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex on Thursday.

The scores were level at 2-2 at the completion of 120 minutes with Abdulaziz al Maqbali (85th, 95th) scoring a brace for Oman and Ahmed Yousef (73rd) and Ahmed Aboalanin (97th) netting for Egypt.

Maqbali, Saud al Farsi, Saad Suhail and Jameel Darwish al Yahmadi scored for Oman in the shoot-out, while Egypt’s Ahmed Tawfiq and Ahmed Aboalanin blundered and missed. Ahmed Yousef was the only one to score for Egypt. The game began as an electrifying atmosphere spurred both the teams as the first ten minutes of the game saw the ball traversing from one end to the other.

Oman’s lone striker Abdulaziz al Maqbali was busy upfront causing all sorts of problems for the Egyptian defence. Saad Suhail and Mohammed Ahmed Teqi got into the groove as well as Oman pushed forward.

Egypt were not to be left behind, cheered on by their trumpet blaring supporters, as Moamen Zakaria’s 14th minute shot kissed the Oman crosspiece and ricocheted. Amro God’s rebounder was high over the crossbar as the visitors got their footing in the game.

It was an entertaining session of play as Oman got a free-kick that Yaseen Khalil al Shiyadi, replacing Mohsen Jawhar, smashed wide off the far post in the 18th minute.

Egypt were attempting to break the deadlock with their own machinations. In the 23rd minute, Mohammed Awwad came close when he was fed a short pass by Ahmed Eid but his shot was wide off the near post.

The match had the best atmosphere of the tournament so far with a carnival-like mood amongst the supporters of both teams.

And for the first time in the competition, Oman seemed visibly under a bit of pressure. Egypt in certain phases were really imposing themselves on the game. The likes of God, Ahmed Tawfik and Eid were taking shots on goal at will.

In the 38th minute, Saad came up with a great move from the left and launched a shot that took some effort from Egypt custodian Mahmoud Mohamed to parry.

At half-time, Muhanna Said and Oman had a lot to ponder about on how to crack the Egyptian puzzle.

Oman looked a lot more vigorous in the second half as the midfielders and the lone forward Al Maqbali attacked.

Egypt were looking to enforce and brought in Ahmed Yousef in place of Ahmed Eid in the 51st minute.

Oman won a corner in the 56th minute but failed to convert the opportunity into a goal as the wait for the elusive goal continued.

The hosts came closest to scoring in the 61st minute when Al Maqbali struggled to tap-in a fine cross from Saad.

After 65 minutes the crowd was getting restless as both teams struggled to find a goal.

Egypt stunned the Omani faithful when Ahmed Yousef scored the first goal of the match in the 73rd minute as the Egyptian supporters went into hysteria.

It was a party atmosphere in the Egyptian stands with flags, music and drums in full flow while the Omani fans prayed for the equaliser.

A suddenly menacing Egyptian outfit was threatening to steal Oman’s thunder in front of their own fans. In the 77th minute, Oman had a goal disallowed after an offside call and the home fans showed their disapproval.

Oman breathtakingly equalised in the 85th minute when Abdulaziz al Maqbali converted a penalty awarded after the ball was handled by Egypt’s Mahmoud Hamdy.

The score remained 1-1 at full-time and for the first time in the tournament Oman’s game went into extra time.

Abdulaziz al Maqbali sent the crowd into a tizzy as he scored off a header in the 95th minute as Oman snatched the lead with the second goal.

Egypt almost immediately levelled scores with Ahmed Aboalanin’s deflected header in the 97th minute adding a new twist to the tale.

It was 2-2 after 120 minutes before the penalties took over.