Sunday 19 / May / 2024
Muscat: Oman’s win over Japan has seen the country’s football team take a big step towards qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, to be hosted by Qatar.
But there is still plenty to be done before the Red Warriors make it to next year’s tournament.
Oman is one of 12 teams in the third qualification round among Asian countries. Split into two groups, the top two teams in each group will make it through to next year’s World Cup.
“The team is confident and looking forward to giving their best after their magnificent win over Japan,” said Lujaina Mohsin Darwish, board member of the Oman Football Association.
“The win over Japan – Asia’s highest ranked team shows the character and skill of our players. This win is a perfect start to this stage of our campaign and many more victories will follow,” she further added.
The Reds are in Group B, which features three teams that are regulars at World Cups: Australia, Japan, and Saudi Arabia. Between them, the trio have appeared at a combined 16 World Cups, with the Japanese making it to every edition since 1998.
China – also in Group B – made their sole appearance in 2002, while Vietnam will also look to make their World Cup debut next year.
“Our fans are ecstatic and are excitedly waiting for the next few matches featuring Oman’s national team. Their goodwill and support is a source of motivation for our players,” added Darwish.
Group A, on the other, looks to be a bit easier on paper: the only World Cup regulars there are South Korea, although both Iran and Iraq have made it to previous tournaments.
The other teams in Group A are the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, and Syria.
Hosts Qatar aside, a maximum of five Asian teams can make it to the upcoming World Cup. The teams that finish in the top two places in each group will make it through, which makes the challenges facing Oman rather daunting.
For the teams that finish in third place in each group, however, there is a longer route to qualification: they will play against each other in a single one-off game, the winner of which will advance to a two-legged intercontinental play-off with a team from North America, South America or Oceania.
Should Oman find themselves in third place, and through to the intercontinental play-off, defeating their opponents over both games will also see them through to the World Cup.
Oman’s fellow Gulf country Bahrain came closest to qualifying for the 2010 World Cup through the play-offs.
After playing out a goalless draw against New Zealand in the first leg, they went on to lose the second leg away from home, which meant the Pacific nation went to South Africa instead.
Should Oman win their next two games against Saudi Arabia in Muscat on September 7, and against Australia in Sydney exactly a month later, they should be in a good position to make a bid for direct qualification, ahead of their games against Vietnam (October 12) and China (November 11).
Of the 32 teams that make it to the World Cup, 13 will come from Europe, and five from Africa.
The final number of countries from the other regions: North and South America, Asia and Oceania, will depend on the intercontinental play-offs. A maximum of six teams from Asia, four from North America, five from South America, and just one from Oceania can make it to Qatar 2022.
Oman’s FIFA ranking meant they were placed directly in the second round of qualification, which also served to book passage to the 2023 Asian Cup. 39 teams took part – North Korea withdrew because of the COVID-19 pandemic – with Oman finishing second in Group E, behind Qatar, but ahead of India, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
The country that finished atop their group, as well as the five teams that have the best results among those that placed second, make it to the third round, as well as seal qualification for the 2023 Asian Cup.
Oman had the second best record among the runners-up, with China finishing in first place among the eight teams finishing in second place. Iraq, Vietnam and Lebanon also made it through to Round 3 in this manner.
