Muscat: Oman will face hosts Jordan in the final of the Jordan International friendly tournament after both teams secured crucial triumphs over Iraq and Syria respectively at the King Abdullah II stadium in the Amman city on Friday. The Red Warriors managed to register a positive start in the friendly tourney as they defeated Iraq 4-3 on penalties after the regulation time ended in a 1-1 draw. In the later match at the same venue, Jordan blanked Syria 2-0. The final match of the international tournament between Oman and Jordan is scheduled to take place on Monday at 10 pm (Oman time) while Iraq will take on Syria in the third and fourth play-off on the same day at 7 pm (Oman time). Earlier, in the Oman-Iraq match, the first half ended in a goalless draw after scoring attempts from both sides. Oman’s forward Mohsin al Ghassani left the match before the end of the first half after suffering an injury and he was replaced by Essam al Subhi. The following half of the match began intensely with both teams fighting for scoring.
As the game headed towards end and prior fixture’s end by 10 minutes, Oman’s Omar al Malki took the lead for his team after a perfect header in the 82nd minute. Three minutes later, Iraq’s Ayman Hussain equalised as he received a long ball and converted it to a goal by a strong header. Oman's youngster goalie Ibrahim al Mukhaini was the star in the penalty shoot-out as he saved three shots of the opponents. Salah al Yahyaei and Omar al Malki missed from the Oman side. Issam al Subhi, Motaz Saleh, Mohammed al Mosalami and Jameel al Yahmadi converted the penalties successfully. The Jordan friendly event acts as crucial preparation for Red Warriors as they are gearing up for Arabian Gulf Cup, 2023 West Asian Championships and 2023 AFC Asian Cup. Oman football’s delegation arrived in Amman city on Sunday and reported to the training sessions.
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