The Oman and Thailand national teams drew 0-0 on Sunday evening during the second round of the group stage of the AFC Asian Cup 2023, currently taking place in Qatar. Oman now has one point in third place in Group Six after losing the first round to Saudi Arabia 1-0, while Thailand has risen to four points after winning their first round against Kyrgyzstan 2-0.
The Omani team started the first half dominating possession and launching attacks, but without any significant impact on the goal. The 16th minute saw Thailand's most dangerous opportunity from a corner kick, converted into a header that was saved by Omani goalkeeper Ibrahim al-Mukhaini. Oman maintained negative possession until the 20th minute, when Thailand again penetrated the right flank, creating a scoring chance that the defense cleared before it reached the goal.
In the second half of the first half, Oman lost control, and Thailand exchanged possession. The Thai team appeared organized, especially in defense, and the Omani players' lack of individual skills hindered converting counterattacks into goals. In the final quarter of the first half, Oman continued to attack through crosses from their left side by Ahmed al-Kaabi and Abdullah Fawaz, but Issam al-Sobhi and Mohsen al-Ghasani failed to turn the chances into goals. With a lack of solutions, Salah al-Yahyai shot from outside the penalty area but missed the target completely.
By the end of the first half, both teams displayed an equal performance in terms of possession and attempts to score, with little genuine threat on the goal in most attempts. Oman's performance was lackluster both in play and result, lacking a clear strategy or method to reach Thailand’s goal, with numerous passing errors.
At the beginning of the second half, Oman had negative possession again, with Thailand launching counter-attacks from the right flank. In the 53rd minute, Omani goalkeeper Ibrahim al-Mukhaini nearly caused his team to fall behind after stumbling while attempting to catch a cross, allowing a Thai striker to head the ball awkwardly wide of the goal.
Salah al-Yahyai continued to play a key role for Oman, and in the 54th minute, he penetrated Thailand’s right side and delivered a dangerous ground pass that the defense cleared. In the second quarter of the second half, Thailand returned to defending their area, repeating the pattern of Oman's inability to penetrate.
As time passed, the tension increased on Omani players’ performance, while the Thai players remained calm, knowing that the draw suited them after their first-round victory over Kyrgyzstan. In the 69th minute, Oman attempted to regroup on Thailand’s left side, but the ability to breach the defense continued to be absent, along with inaccurate crosses.
The 74th minute created Oman's most significant opportunity through a left-side cross reaching Issam al-Sobhi, who, without any defensive pressure, let the ball slip, and the Thai goalkeeper cleared it to a corner. In the 81st minute, Khalid al-Bariki rescued Oman from a dangerous counter-attack that almost turned into a one-on-one situation with the goal, leading to the match ending in a goalless draw.
