Muscat, June 6
The Oman under-19 national football team concluded their training camp in Baghdad with an important 1-0 victory over their Iraqi counterparts in the second match between the two teams at the Al Shaab International Stadium. This friendly match was part of both teams' preparations for the upcoming West Asian Youth Championship and the AFC Under-20 Asian Cup qualifiers.
The first match, held last Sunday, ended in Iraq's 3-1 victory.
The match started with high intensity from the Oman team, as they took the initiative to attack and threaten the Iraqi goal on more than one occasion. Muhannad al Saeedi had a golden opportunity to score from a powerful shot, but Iraqi goalkeeper Sajad Mohammed excelled and saved the situation.
After that, the game was confined to the midfield with a relative advantage for Iraq, but without any real danger to the Oman national team's goal. The final minutes of the first half saw a dangerous opportunity for Mustafa Qabil, who came face to face with the Iraqi goalkeeper but squandered it, leaving the score tied at 0-0 at half-time.
The second half saw increased excitement and competitiveness between the two teams, each relying on counter-attacks. The Oman national team had a dangerous shot that almost shook the Iraqi net, and the debate continued as Iraq's Mohammed Ali Wahid fired a powerful shot that went wide of the Oman team's post.
With the 80th minute approaching, Fahd al Mukhaini led a swift Omani attack, resulting in the ball reaching Ghassan al Masrouri, who scored the winning goal with a powerful shot that found the back of the Iraqi net.
The Iraqi team pressed in the final minutes to salvage a draw, but the Oman national team's defence held firm against all attempts, emerging victorious with a 1-0 clean sheet.
With this result, the Oman U19 national team concluded its six-day training camp in Baghdad, achieving an important victory in its last match.
West Asian Youth Championship
The West Asian Football Federation has also announced the date and venue for the third edition of the youth championship, which will be held in the city of Taif in Saudi Arabia at the King Fahd International Stadium and the Okadh Club Stadium from June 25 to July 5.
Twelve teams will participate in the tournament, including 11 teams from the West Asia region (Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Bahrain, UAE, Oman, Yemen, Kuwait, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine) and Albania as guests from outside the region.
The draw for the tournament will be held on June 18, and the mechanism for distributing the participating teams and the official match schedule will be announced later.
Albania's participation comes at a special invitation from the West Asian Football Federation and as a first step in an expected cooperation agreement with the Union of European Football Associations.
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