Key midfielder Arshad Al-Alaoui (Al-Shiv Club) will be absent, but Oman’s attackers are threatening enough.
Led by coach Hong Myung-bo, the Korean national soccer team will play the second Group B match against Oman in the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North Korea and the U.S. at Sultan Qaboos Stadium in Muscat, Oman, at 11 p.m. on Saturday (Korea time). Ranked fourth in Group B with one draw, the team needs to win unconditionally. In past matches, the team has an advantage with four wins and one loss.
Oman is also considered an underdog in Group B as it ranks 76th in FIFA rankings. However, it is not an easy target. Oman lost to Iraq 0-1 in the first group match. Despite its numerical inferiority, it showed good performance in away matches in Iraq.
Above all, Oman’s strength has become more solid since the inauguration of Jaroslav Silhavi, who led the Czech Republic to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Euro 2020. Oman has had three wins, one draw and one loss since Silhavi took the helm. It had three wins and one draw before losing 0-1 in the first group match against Iraq.
Oman scored eight goals and allowed only two runs in five matches during the period. As such, the defense is well balanced. The defense is stable enough to have three scoreless games.
Fortunately, key midfielder Alawi will be absent due to accumulated number of warnings in the first group match against Iraq. Alawi is a midfielder but has excellent attack capability and ability to score goals. From the perspective of the national team’s defense, there is one less guard.
However, this does not necessarily mean that Oman’s capabilities will significantly decline. Attacks with speed and skills including forward Mohamed Al-Gafri (Al-Shah Barb SC), flanker Isam Al-Sabri (Al-Nahda Club) and Abdulrahman Al-Mu Shayfrey (Al-Shiv Club) are quite threatening. As the team failed to win the first match at home, chances are high that it will struggle against Oman’s attack if it concede the first goal. 먹튀검증
Notably, the team went to Oman on an away match. European soccer players moved to Korea and moved to the Middle East without time to adjust to the time difference. In the preliminary match of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup held on October 21, 2003, which was the only away match in Oman, the team suffered a crushing defeat by 1-3 even after scoring the first goal. Excluding one warm-up match in which the team secured a landslide victory, the team had a one goal gap in all three matches in which it secured victory over Oman.