Alkass Digital
After a hard-fought battle in the Education City Stadium between Qatar and Oman, Qatar’s national team left the spectacle of a stadium victorious and with a clear lead in their group with a 2-1 victory over the Omanis.
After a 1-0 victory over Bahrain in their opening match, the Asian Champions looked to continue their victory run to keep a comfortable first place in their group and qualify for the quarter-finals, while Oman was seeking full points to stay in the race. Oman has historically been a tough opponent for Qatar, however, the Al Annabi team overcame their neighbors in both their joint qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2021 Asian Cup in the past years.
The opening goal was scored in the 32nd minute by way of a penalty kick, after Akram Afif valiantly dribbled into the box and was fouled, allowing him to take to the penalty spot and score to bring his team one goal up against Oman. Oman answered back in the 74th minute with a goal of their own, scored by Khalid Al Hajri, who had an aerial battle with two of Qatar’s defenders and won the header to beat the keeper and equalize the game.
To both teams’ surprise, one final goal was scored prior to the final whistle, as Oman’s Fahmi Durbin sent a rogue header past his keeper and into the net for an own goal in the 97th minute, solidifying the win for Qatar.
Qatar will now face off against Iraq in their next group A match will take place at the Al Bayt Stadium on the 6th of December, while Oman will battle Bahrain on the same day at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium.