Iraq vs Oman — Tips & Analysis

Iraq -0.25: Iraq have not lost to Oman in their last six meetings. They won three of those and tied the other three. The two most recent games both finished 1-0 to Iraq. Iraq also name close to their strongest group for this one. Zidane Iqbal, Ali Al-Hamadi, Ali Jasim and Ayman Hussein are all available, with only Kevin Yakob out injured. Their last three losses came against Norway, France and Senegal at the World Cup, so those results say little about this level. Iraq have won 8 of their last 17 games. Oman have not played a competitive game in 289 days, against 89 days for Iraq. They score less than a goal a game and have not won by 2 or more in their last 14. The last six meetings between these two averaged under 2 goals in total. This one is on neutral ground in Jeddah, so neither side gets a crowd behind them. Expect a slow, tight game decided by one moment, a set piece or a late goal. A 1-0 win for Iraq is the most likely finish, and that gets the job done. The catch is that Oman are hard to beat. They have lost only 3 of their last 14 games and tied 7 of them. That long lay-off could also leave them fresh rather than rusty. Iraq still have the better players available and the recent history, so we are with them.