The Indian football team has been drawn in a tough group alongside top Asian nation Iran, Oman, Turkmenistan and Guam for the second phase of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Iran is the top-ranked team in the Asian Football Confederation at 40th in FIFA charts, while Oman is ranked 97 in Group D. India, courtesy their 26-place jump to 147 in the latest world rankings, were placed in Pot 3. India had made the leap after defeating Nepal 2-0 on aggregate in the first round of qualifiers for the showpiece event in Russia.
India will play the four teams at home and away. The Asian qualifying competition begins on June 11, 2015 and runs until March 29, 2016. The countries that finish top of the eight groups and the four best second-placed teams will progress to the third and final qualification phase for the World Cup in Russia. They will also qualify for the 2019 Asian Cup in the UAE.
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India’s Matches:
June 11, 2015 – India vs Oman
June 16, 2015 – Guam vs India
September 8, 2015 – India vs Iran
October 8, 2015 – Turkmenistan vs India
October 13, 2015 – Oman vs India
November 12, 2015 – India vs Guam
March 24, 2016 – Iran vs India
March 29, 2016 – India vs Turkmenistan
FIFA World Cup 2018 Qualifier: India Vs Oman in Bengaluru
India will begin their FIFA World Cup Qualification campaign against Oman in Bengaluru at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on the 11th of June. India find themselves in a difficult group which also includes Iran, Guam and Turkmenistan.
FIFA Rankings:
Oman: 101
India: 141
Oman are placed exactly 40 places above India in the latest FIFA rankings released recently. As far as the Asian Confederation is concerned, Oman are 11th while India are 22nd on the list.
It’s an incredibly difficult task for India, especially considering that Iran and Oman are the favourites to finish first and second. Iran’s FIFA ranking is currently 41, which makes them the best Asian team in the world by ranking. For a 141-ranked India, just to remain competitive against them would be a moral victory in its own right.
So, let’s be practical. If India are serious about going to the next round, they’ll need to ensure they pick off victories against Turkmenistan (ranked 173) and Guam (174). Maybe, hope to steal a draw against Iran. But, the biggest two matches will be against Oman (ranked 101). And that’s why this home match against Oman on June 11 is extremely important.
Head-to-head record:
| Teams | Played | Won | Lost | Draw | Goals Scored | Goals Conceded | Goal Difference |
| Oman | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 5 |
| India | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 11 | -5 |
India haven’t beaten Oman in a competitive game since 1994 when they ran out 4-1 winners. Oman had their revenge when they beat India 5-1 in their own backyard in a World Cup Qualifier.
In their most recent meeting, Oman ran out 5-1 winners again. The other result sandwiched between the two defeats for the Indian team was a 0-0 when India needed to overturn a 5-1 loss in the first round.
India’s chances:
The game in this land of 1.2 billion people is coming of age but to imagine India getting through this round of qualification would be jumping the gun. Plenty of work is still required to be done at the grassroots level but the motivation of earning a World Cup berth should be a good place to start for the players donning the Indian colours presently.
India would be hoping that their two lead strikers Sunil Chhetri and Robin Singh will strike top form and their midfield manned by the likes of Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Jackichand Singh and C.K. Vineeth, among others, will hold tight.
The outcome of Thursday’s game is likely to hinge largely on midfield supremacy. India will have to work hard to contain the mercurial Omanese led by goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi who has represented Wigan in the English Premier League.
Match Prediction: India vs Oman Who will win?
As per Prediction and see the recent performance of both team and Oman is better team then india but still India are today favourite to win against Oman in the home condition and their chances of Win over 55 percent against Oman team and Expecting score is to be 3-2.
Though India have made progress under Englishman Stephen Constantine, beating Nepal in a two-legged preliminary qualifier in March, the chief coach knows it’s going to require an extraordinary effort to emerge with a victory against Oman who, at 101, are ranked 40 places higher than the hosts in the pecking order.
India’s top goal-scorer, Sunil Chettri, will have to bring his A-game to get past the Omani goalkeeper, Ali Al Habsi, who has played in the English Premier League. The defence including the skipper, Arnab Mondal, needs to be resilient to counter any threats from the opposition frontline.
Earlier this week at a media interaction, Sandesh Jhingan (Kerala Blasters FC) spoke about India’s chances against Oman and the positive influence of Coach Stephen Constantine on the rest of the squad.