(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Hani al Dhabit the 35 year old striker has made a much talked about return to the national fold after a ten-year absence as Oman coach Paul Le Guen picked him in the 23-member squad on Monday for the 22nd Gulf Cup which will be played in Riyadh Saudi Arabia from November 13-26.
Dhabit who currently plays for Dhofar Club last played in the Gulf Cup in 2004 when Oman finished runner-up in Doha Qatar.
Expectedly Le Guen's squad for the Gulf Cup - to be skippered by custodian Ali al Habsi - did not have any surprises except for Dhabit's selection who had anyway been on the coach's mind following his recent performance in the Omantel Professional League (OPL).
Muscat Daily had first reported on September 25 that the veteran striker is on Le Guen's radar and could make a return to the national side for the Riyadh trip.
Le Guen had told Muscat Daily back then 'I feel he is a good team player. I will follow his performance in the upcoming OPL matches and if he impresses me I can pick him. I believe the only truth in football is how a player is on the pitch.'
Dhabit who first played for Oman in 1998 took part in four successive editions of the Gulf Cup from 1998-2004 and made a total of 83 appearances for the Red Warriors.
He holds a record as well. He top-scored with 22 international goals in 2001 - the only Omani to do so - and was named world football's top-scorer by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) beating Spain's Raul Gonzalez England's Michael Owen and Portugal's Luis Figo.
The recent pullout of experienced forward Imad al Hosni from the team due to an ankle injury was another factor in forcing Le Guen to opt for Dhabit.
Speaking to Muscat Daily on Monday ahead of the team's departure on Tuesday aboard a Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) aircraft Le Guen said 'The injury to Imad is a big blow and we will miss him just as we will miss defender Mohammed Sheeba who is also out with an injury.'
Oman goes into the Gulf Cup with confidence having won 2-0 against Yemen in a warmup match in Muscat last week. Prior to the Yemen game the Red Warriors hosted a strong Uruguay side featuring Luis Suarez and also Costa Rica. Though Oman lost both the friendlies - 0-3 to Uruguay and 3-4 to Costa Rica - Le Guen said the matches served his purpose of getting a good idea of Oman's strengths and weaknesses.
In Riyadh Oman takes on defending champion UAE in its opening clash on November 14. The other teams in Pool B are Iraq and Kuwait. Pool A comprises hosts Saudi Arabia Yemen Bahrain and Qatar.
The inaugural match will be played between Saudi Arabia and Qatar on November 13.
The Omani delegation at the Gulf Cup will be headed by Sayyid Khalid al Busaidy the Oman Football Association (OFA) chairman.
Team:
Goalkeepers: Ali al Habsi Muhannad al Zaabi Mazin al Kasbi; Defenders: Saad Suhail Hussain Mudhaffar Nasser al Shimli Ali al Busaidy Mohammed al Mussallami Ali al Nahar Abdulsalam Amour Jaber al Owaisi; Midfielders: Ahmed Mubarak 'Kanu' Eid al Farsi Raeed Ibrahim Ali al Jabri Qasim Said Juma Darwish Hussain al Hadhri Fahad al Jalboobi; Strikers: Hani al Dhabit Mohammed al Ghassani Mohammed al Siyabi Abdulaziz al Miqbali.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.