In a historic precedent at the tournament level, the draw was conducted in the AlUla Hall of the Intercontinental Hotel in Jeddah, to determine the team that qualified for the 27th Gulf semi-final, for Oman, to officially advance, along with Al-Akhdar, from the first group in the runner-up position and set a date on Saturday with the winner of the second group in the tournament.
The Competitions Committee of the Gulf Football Federation held its meeting under the chairmanship of Dr. Khalid Al-Muqrin after Oman achieved a huge surprise and was able to equal Iraq on points and goals in the first group of the 27th Gulf Cup in Jeddah, forcing the Lions of Mesopotamia to go through a lottery to determine who qualifies with the Saudi team to the semi-finals of the tournament.
After the end of the draw, and in the midst of Omani joy, voices of Iraqi anger rose amid accusations that Oman was notified in advance on the field of its qualification, which was denied by the head of the Gulf Competitions Committee, who confirmed that the entire matter was subject to the tournament regulations and that both parties were clearly informed of all procedures.
Musab Al-Shaqsi’s celebration of the third goal caused Oman to lose direct qualification to the semi-finals of the Gulf Cup “with a difference of cards” over Iraq after they were equal in points and goals. The closing night of the first group matches in “Gulf 27” witnessed an exciting drama after Iraq lost to the host Saudi team with a score of 0-2. On the other hand, Oman beat Kuwait with a score of 3-1 so that the Saudi team qualified from the top spot with a full score (9 points).
The balance of Iraq and Oman stopped at 4 points, in addition to being equal in the number of goals scored and received, as well as equal in the number of yellow cards, 8-8.
It is noteworthy that Al-Shaqsi's teammates tried to dissuade him from taking off his shirt in order to avoid the yellow card and rise to the "Fair Play" runner-up, one card ahead of Iraq, but the player's crazy joy overcame the scene and the referee announced the yellow card and Oman was forced to wait and watch for the result of the draw.
Graham Arnold, coach of the Iraqi national team, attributed his team's loss to the Saudi national team to the mistakes made by his players during the confrontation, praising at the same time the level at which the "Green" team appeared.
Arnold said during the press conference after the match: “The Saudi team played well, while we committed a number of mistakes that cost us a lot.”
In response to Asharq Al-Awsat’s question about qualification calculations and the importance of small details in deciding the transit ticket, Arnold said: “We have to resort to the regulations of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA). Our level is higher than Oman and our classification is higher, and if we want to be fair we have to follow the laws. "We'll see what happens, but I think it wouldn't be fair if we didn't qualify."
The Iraqi coach touched on the next stage, saying: “We have to do a great job in the semi-finals, and after two days a number of injured players will return to us.”
Musab Al-Shaqsi’s celebration of the third goal caused Oman to lose direct qualification to the semi-finals of the Gulf Cup “by card difference” over Iraq after they were equal in points and goals.
According to Asharq Al-Awsat sources, the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation will meet at a later time to hold a draw in order to determine the team that qualifies from second place in the first group.
The closing night of the first group matches in “Gulf 27” witnessed an exciting drama after Iraq lost to the host Saudi team with a score of 0-2. On the other hand, Oman beat Kuwait with a score of 3-1 so that the Saudi team qualified from the top spot with a full score (9 points).
The balance of Iraq and Oman stopped at 4 points, in addition to being equal in the number of goals scored and received, as well as equal in the number of yellow cards, 8-8.
It is noteworthy that Al-Shaqsi's teammates tried to dissuade him from taking off his shirt in order to avoid the yellow card and rise to the "Fair Play" runner-up, one card ahead of Iraq, but the player's crazy joy overcame the scene and the referee announced the yellow card and Oman was forced to wait and watch for the result of the draw.
