MUSCAT: Jordan earned the second win of their campaign after defeating Oman 4-0 in their AFC Asian Qualifiers — Road to 26 Group B match on Tuesday at Amman International Stadium. The triumph took Jordan to the second position by seven points and equal to Iraq while Oman remained in their three points. This is the first official defeat for Oman head Coach Rasheed Jaber since he took charge of the team replacing Czech Coach Jaroslav Silhavy.
The home side began the match actively towards attacking area as they were seeking to score an early goal. Jordan forward Yazan al Naimat was the star from the hosts side as he did many movements inside the box. Oman on the other side was depending on counterattacks. In the 17th minute, Ali al Busaidy crossed a ball from corner kick but it was saved by the Jordan goalie. Two minutes later, another attempt was missed for Oman as the header of Amjad al Harthy went to the left of the box after another cross by Ali al Busaidy.
Oman’s defender Amjad al Harthy broke a serious scoring attempt of the hosts as Jordan’s Yazen al Naimat tried to move towards Ibrahim al Mukhaini but Al Harthy entered at the right time to clear the ball in the 24h minute.
After several attempts, Jordan’s Yazan al Naimat opened the account as he sent a strong header to the bottom right corner of the goal after a perfect cross supplied by Mahmoud al Mardi in the 26th minute. Jordan’s Ali Alwan was close to second goal but his shot was blocked after a nice assist by Mohannad Abu Taha in the 36th minute.
The hosts' domination continued their pressure towards Omani side as Nizar al Rashdan missed another scoring attempt after his shot went to the top left corner in the 37th minute. The Red Warriors' first actual attempt came in the 40th minute after Amjad al Harthy made a good cross in to the centre of the box but Mohsin al Ghassani could not connect the ball. The first half ended with the hosts leading by 1-0.
The first 15 minutes of the second half saw many changes in the match as the hosts raised their scoring by two more goals. In the 48th minute, Saudi referee Khalid al Turais decided for a penalty for Jordan and it was converted successfully to goal by Ali Olwan in the 49th minute. Five minutes later, Yazan Al Naimat managed to score the third goal for Jordan and his second in this game through a strong shot from outside the box following perfect assist by Ali Olwan to make it 3-0.
Oman coach Jaber felt the danger and he decided for three substitutions together as he brought in Yazeed al Maashani, Abdullah Fawaz and Hatem al Roushdi replacing Amjad al Harthy, Arshad al Alawi and Salah al Yahyaei respectively. Later on, Zahir al Aghbari replaced Abdulrahman al Mushaifri.
Zahir al Aghbari missed a chance to score the first goal as his shot went past the left side of the goalpost in the 75th minute. Ali Olwan confirmed his team's win after he scored the fourth goal to seal three crucial points and raise his team credit to seven points in the group. Five minutes were added as additional time but without any change in the result.
Oman will meet Palestine in Muscat on November 14 and they will host Iraq on November 19 at Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
