((WATCH>>STREAMS!)) Saudi Arabia vs Oman Live Free Online Broadcast 16 January 2024
Saudi Arabia vs Oman FREE LIVE STREAM (1/16/2024): Watch AFC Asian Cup online | Time, TV channel. Saudi Arabia will be the favourites on paper when they face Oman in the two teams' first game in Group F of the 2023 Asian Cup at the Khalifa International Stadium on Tuesday.
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On the back of the growing popularity of the Saudi Pro League, it's been a while since the Green Falcons emerged triumphant in the Asian Cup having won it in 1984, 1988, and 1996. Roberto Mancini has so far managed a perfect record in World Cup qualifying since his appointment as head coach.
Oman will want to take confidence from their 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia at last year's Gulf Cup of Nations, but coach Branko Ivankovic will have the task of bettering the nation's round-of-16 finish in 2019. The two-time Gulf Cup winners last defeated UAE 1-0 in a friendly.
Here’s what you need to know:
What: AFC Asian Cup
Who: Barcelona vs. Real Madrid
When: Tuesday, January 16, 2024
Time: 12:30 pm ET
Where: Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar
Just days before the tournament, Nawaf Al-Aqidi, Abbas Al-Hassan and Ayman Yahya were replaced by Mohammed Al-Rubaie, Mohammed Al-Breik and Talal Haji, while Rayyan Hamid has been demoted to the U23 Olympic side.
Al-Hilal's trio of Ali Al-Bulaihi, Saud Abdulhamid and Salem Al-Dawsari is likely to be joined by Roberto Fimino's strike partner at Al-Ahly, Firas Al-Buraikan, in the XI.
Ivankovic also has a squad mainly playing in the domestic top flight, with the exception of goalkeeper and captain Faiz Al-Rushaidi who plays for Manama Club in Bahrain.
Juma Al-Habsi replaced Muhammad Al-Amiri in the squad due to the latter's injury in December, while Jameel Al-Yahmadi, Ahmed Al-Khamisi, Khalid Al-Braiki and Ahmed Al-Kaabi will be tasked to contain the Saudi attack.
The experienced Harib Al-Saadi should lead the midfield, with Issam Al-Sabhi upfront.
The player to watch for this match will be Rachmat Irianto, the attacking midfielder has become an important piece in the tactical scheme of his team as he is in charge of generating spaces and distributing the ball for his teammates, likewise, the fact that he is on the field gives an assurance to his team that there will be dangerous plays that can end in goal for Omán.
The player to watch for this match will be Saleh Al-Shehri the attacking midfielder has become an important piece in the tactical scheme of his team as he is in charge of generating spaces and distributing the ball for his teammates, likewise, the fact that he is on the field gives a security to his set that there will be dangerous plays that can end in Arabia Saudita's goal.
Saudi Arabia and Oman have met on a total of 27 occasions (8 wins for Saudi Arabia, 11 draws, 8 wins for Oman) where the scales are all square. In goal scoring history, Saudi Arabia has the advantage with 34 goals scored to Oman's 31. Their last meeting dates back to an international friendly in January 2023 where Saudi Arabia beat Oman 2-0.
Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium is a soccer stadium located in Doha, Qatar. This stadium has been used for various sporting events, especially soccer matches, and has hosted local and international competitions. It has a capacity to hold 10,000 spectators, providing space for exciting sporting events and high-level competitions. Like many stadiums in Qatar, Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium features modern facilities and spectator amenities. These can include state-of-the-art technology, comfortable seating, food areas and amenities to enhance the overall spectator experience.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia also arrives at the Asian Cup of Nations with the illusion of having a great performance and looking to fight to reach the knockout stages where they can fight to win the Cup. As in the previous and upcoming match, Saudi Arabia comes as the victim in the role of the match since they do not usually have great performances in the history of these tournaments, however, this match can serve as a breath of fresh air since getting the three points would put them right into the fight to qualify in a group where Japan and Iraq are the favorites to win the tickets that give access to the next phase.
Oman's national team must take advantage of this match against the Saudi Arabian national team to take a breakthrough and improve their collective soccer towards their attempt to qualify for the knockout stages of the 2024 Asian Cup of Nations. Oman also faces an extremely tough group, but with a real and high possibility of qualifying to the next stage of this tournament. For this game, they will have to take advantage of the possibility of getting three points against a team that may not represent a strong threat to get the three points, since their next game, which will be the one to close their participation in the group stage of the tournament, will be against Iraq, a team that does represent a danger and is much more favored to get three points to qualify as second in the group.
The new edition of the Asian Nations Cup is back with the best actions, emotions, controversies, plays, goals, players and matches of one of the biggest continents in the world where soccer has grown by leaps and bounds. Little by little, the continent's nations began to export several players to the world's top leagues and the project bore fruit as they gathered their best players to represent the colors of their flag with dignity on the pitch in the search for eternal glory in Asia.
In this group stage match between Saudi Arabia and Oman, both teams will be able to test the level they will face in the next match and the level they will have to be at in order to face a great challenge such as this tournament. Also, after a long time away from national competitions, these 90 minutes will be useful for the players to polish and fine-tune minimum details, improving their collective and individual game.
Thailand and Kyrgyzstan are the two other teams in Group F, so Saudi Arabia should be able to finish at least second in the group table and earn a place in the knockout round. They are three-time champions in the continental competition, last lifting the trophy in 1996.
In the previous edition, they made it to the round of 16 after being eliminated from the group stage in 2011 and 2015. Nonetheless, they lost 1-0 to eventual runners-up Japan.
Oman were also eliminated from the round of 16 in 2019 and will look to improve upon that record this time around. Interestingly, it was their best-ever performance in the continental competition, having been eliminated from the group stage in their first three appearances.
The 1996 champions are unbeaten in their last five games across all competitions, recording four wins and keeping clean sheets in all games. Oman have two losses in their last four games and in their friendly against UAE last week, they recorded a 1-0 win.
Al-Suqour Al-Khodhur have played three friendlies in January, keeping clean sheets in these games while scoring three goals. They have suffered eight defeats in their last 11 games in the Asian Cup. They have won three of their last four meetings against Oman, though suffered a 2-1 loss in their previous outing in the Gulf Cup last year.
Roberto Mancini will take charge of his team in an official competition for the first time and has called up a strong squad for the tournament.
The Reds have seen conclusive results in their last seven games across all competitions, recording five wins. In their last 10 games in the Asian Cup, they have two wins to their name while suffering six losses.
There's nothing much to separate the two teams at the moment and both teams registered wins in their friendlies ahead of their campaign opener. Considering Saudi Arabia's better record against their southern rivals and superior record in the Asian Cup, we back them to eke out a narrow win.
The Al-Hilal striker then bagged two more against Jordan five days later, before Saudi Arabia shifted focus to their return to Qatar, where they stunned the Argentinians just over a year ago. Keeping three clean sheets, Mancini's men have played a trio of friendlies this month, beating Lebanon 1-0 and then drawing 0-0 with Palestine in Doha before concluding their preparations against Hong Kong on Wednesday.