Indian Football Team Rival Watch: Oman

India will face Oman in the third-place match in the CAFA Nations Cup 2025.

The Indian football team will be looking to end their CAFA Nations Cup 2025 campaign on a high note when they face off against Oman in the third-place playoff clash on Monday (8th September 2025).

With both teams having secured second-place finishes in the group stages, they will now be able to play one more match to determine the third-best team of the competition.

India will play Oman on 8th September in the third-place match in the CAFA Nations Cup 2025!#IndianFootball #IndianFootballTeam #BlueTigers pic.twitter.com/qaizFDCILD

— Khel Now (@KhelNow) September 5, 2025

This will be a very challenging clash for India, as they face a team that is well over 54 places above them in the FIFA World Rankings. Oman are blessed to have a highly talented squad of players who are blessed with experience and quality that has allowed them to perform strongly at the international level.

Khalid Jamil’s side can expect a very challenging battle against the Oman side, and there are certain key aspects to be learnt about the Reds before this upcoming clash.

Also Read: Venue for Indian Football team’s AFC Asian Cup 2027 Qualifier against Singapore revealed

About the Team

The Oman national football team have been playing at the international level since the 1960s, and their first international match actually took place in September 1965. Since then, they have performed pretty strongly in the Asian Football scene and are currently ranked in the 79th position in the FIFA World Rankings.

Even though Oman have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup tournament, they have been able to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup on five occasions. This includes qualifying for the last three Asian Cup tournaments, even reaching the Round of 16 in 2019. They have qualified for the Arab Cup twice in the past, reaching the quarter-finals of the tournament in 2021.

However, the Reds have earned more success in the Arabian Gulf Cup in the past. They have finished as runners-up in that tournament four times and also won the title twice since 2009. Moreover, they finished in third place in the 2012 WAFF Championship as well, gaining some decent success in these regional tournaments in their history.

Recent Performances

Oman are actually heading into this clash at the back of some impressive performances in the CAFA Nations Cup. In fact, they went through the group stages undefeated, winning two matches and picking up seven points from the three games. However, they finished as the runners-up because Uzbekistan scored more goals than them and earned a place in the final.

The Reds are currently on the back of a four-match unbeaten record that stretches back to June (2025. They have only lost two games out of their 12 matches in matches in 2025, and they even held South Korea to a 1-1 draw in a World Cup qualifier clash earlier this year.

Oman defeated the likes of Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan in the group stages of the CAFA Nations Cup. They have scored five goals and conceded three goals in the matches in this tournament so far, being quite a gritty unit and clinical on the transitions as well.

The Coach

Carlos Queiroz has been acting as the head coach of the Oman national football team since July (2025) and has only been able to coach them for a few matches. Indeed, the CAFA Nations Cup is the first tournament where Queiroz has properly been able to manage the Oman players and check out their strengths and weaknesses.

For those unknowing, Queiroz is actually a highly experienced coach who has worked in a number of high-profile roles in his career. The Portuguese gaffer started his coaching career way back in 1989, working as the head coach for the Portugal under-20 men’s national team. He also worked as the Portugal head coach from 1991-1993, helping them win 10 of the 23 matches under them.

Queiroz helped Portugal win the FIFA World Youth Championship twice and also the UEFA U-16 Euros in 1989. He would also go on to have a memorable stint as the Sporting CP head coach in the 1990s, helping them win the 1994-95 Taca de Portugal title. Queiroz is also famous for his stint as the assistant coach at Manchester United in the 2000s, while he also worked as the Real Madrid head coach in the 2003-2004 season.

Queiroz played a key role in helping Cristiano Ronaldo develop into a top player at Manchester United. He had a memorable stint as Iran head coach from 2011-2019, helping them qualify for two FIFA World Cup editions! Over the last few years, the Portuguese head coach has worked as the Qatar and Iran head coach roles before joining Oman.

Across his coaching career, Queiroz has shown a preference for the 4-1-4-1 formation with his teams. In his playing style, he likes a deep-lying midfielder who can slip back to aid the defenders and also move the ball from their own box to the attacking players. Two wingers are used to trouble defenders with speedy movement in the wide areas, with a lot of crossing and counter-attacking football being prioritized under the Portuguese gaffer.

Players to Watch

Muhsen Al-Ghassani

Muhsen Al-Ghassani is heading into the clash against India with a lot of momentum behind him. The Bangkok United forward scored a crucial late goal to help Oman pick up the win over Turkmenistan in their final group game, proving his quality from the final third. Al-Ghassani scored 22 goals in the 2024-25 season for Bangkok United and has proven to be a handful for defenders in the Thai League.

Al-Ghassani seems to have adjusted to Queiroz’s system quite efficiently, being a major threat with his movement in the final third and his application to the goal-scoring chances.

He will be looking to trouble the Indian defenders with his smart off-the-ball runs in the final third and also sneak into the goal-scoring positions more frequently.

Al-Ghassani will be a major thorn for the defenders because of his unpredictable playing style and his ruthless finishing ability in the key scoring areas.

Issam Al-Sabhi

Issam Al-Sabhi has come into the CAFA Nations League at the back of an impressive 2024-25 campaign with Iraqi side Al-Quwa Al-Jaw FC. He scored 11 goals and provided four assists in 22 Iraq Stars League matches last season and has proven himself as an instinctive goalscorer over the last few years.

Al-Sabhi will be determined to continue his admirable form in the CAFA Nations Cup after having scored a brace in the win over the Kyrgyz Republic.

He will be leading the line with pride and aims to be a major thorn for the defenders with his smart off-the-ball runs in the key attacking areas. Al-Sabhi will also look to improve his link-up play and work in the final third to help his side disrupt the Indian backline and be a menace with his goal-scoring attributes.

What to Expect?

After barely coming up short in their group, Oman will be hungry and extremely motivated to at least secure a third-place finish in the CAFA Nations Cup. They are heading into this match with quite a bit of momentum behind them and their team has all the attributes to cause a challenging task for India in the upcoming clash.

The Oman players will aim to use their physicality and high energy levels to win duels and tire out the Indian players. They will be aiming to be especially prolific on set-pieces because of their physical prowess and also rely on crossing football to give their forwards enough chances to test Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.

Oman will not be that desperate to maintain possession at all times and will also keep a sturdy defensive line to frustrate India. They might be the favourites for this game, but the Oman players will not take it for granted and pour their utmost qualities to bag an important win for their side.

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