Oman manager Erwin Koeman claimed that he was pleased to see his team get a 2-1 victory over India in the first World Cup 2022 qualifying game. It was a difficult test for Oman considering that they were playing away from home against a team that has been showing a lot of improvements under a new management. Things turned out to be bad for Oman at the start of the game, as Sunil Chhetri came up with the opening goal inside 30 minutes. This gave the impetus for India to be on the front foot and the almost held out for a victory.

Rabia Alawi Al Mandhar was able to come up with the equaliser with eight minutes of normal time left, while he completed the comeback in injury time. This led to a stunning silence on the part of India supporters, who almost saw their team get a positive start to the campaign. As it stands,Omanwere able to build on the recent form and get more success. The upcoming match in September forOman is a friendly against Lebanon and this match may be used as a preparation by Koeman for the upcoming game against Afghanistan in October.Omanare up against Afghanistan and Qatar in October.

“ I’m very pleased with the result under difficult circumstances. With the domestic league yet to start for us as well our opponents, it was a disadvantage for both the teams. Despite the lack of our preparations, we focused a lot on the physical aspect. Our camp in Germany helped as our boys could fight till the end. Our players had a better fitness level and it showed in the second-half. This being the opening match of the qualifiers, our players also took time to settle down,” said the Oman manager after the game.