International U19 football tournament in Muscat

(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) In an effort to provide the national team good preparations for the forthcoming Asian (AFC) U19 Championship qualifiers later this month, the Oman Football Association (OFA) is set to host a three-nation international friendly tournament in Muscat from October 5-9.

The OFA had initially planned to host a four-nation meet but a last-minute pullout of Uzbekistan has left the tournament with only three teams – Oman, Egypt and Syria.

The friendly tournament will kick off on October 5 with the opening match to be played between Oman and Egypt at the Seeb Sports Stadium.

The match begins at 6.30pm. Egypt will meet Syria on October 8 followed by Oman's game against Syria the next day.

Oman is pooled in Group A along with Bahrain, UAE, Nepal and hosts Kyrgyz Republic in the AFC qualifiers that will be played in Bishkek from October 31-November 8. Oman meets UAE in its opening game on

October 31 followed by matches against the hosts (November 2), Bahrain (Nov 6) and Nepal (Nov 8). Ten group winners and five best second-placed teams will advance to finals along with the host country.