MUSCAT : Expectations are high in Oman, with fans rooting for a third title. Several die-hard fans of the team have availed free tickets to watch all the action live from Basra. Hotels and restaurants in the city and elsewhere have also made arrangements to stream the match live for football addicts here.
In a pre-match press conference, Ivankovic Branko, coach of the national team, said he was proud of the players for making it to the final, as it was not an easy road.
He added: “The final match is different from the opening match that we played with the Iraqi national team, and we are ready for all possibilities. The finals are played in order to win and to achieve titles, and I hope that the match will be resolved in the set time.”
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The final match between Oman and Iraq this evening will be preceded by the closing ceremony of the tournament, which will include a number of items that reflect the history and civilization of Iraq, Basra in particular, in the presence of a number of Arab artists who will perform during the ceremony.
The match will be officiated by a Romanian refereeing crew led by Kovacs Stefan, assisted by Maritimo Vasili and Aratin Mihai, Qatari Salman Falahi as fourth referee, and Qatari Zaher Al Shammari as fifth referee. France’s Jeremy Benard will be the video assistant referee, assisted by Moroccan Radwan Jaid and Saudi Abdullah Al Shehri, while Bahraini Khalifa Al Dossary will assess the referees.
This is the fifth final that the Omani team has reached since adopting the two-group system after the Gulf 17 editions in Qatar in 2004, the Gulf 18 in the UAE in 2007, the Gulf 19 in the Sultanate of Oman in 2009, and the Gulf 23 in Kuwait in 2018. The title was won twice, in 2009 and 2018. While this is the second final that the Iraqi national team has reached since the adoption of the two-group system, as it previously reached the final of the Gulf Cup 21 in the Kingdom of Bahrain in 2013 and lost the title to the brotherly Emirati team, with a score of 2/1.
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