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3. Football: Lebanon Stumbles, Oman Takes Advantage

In a friendly match played Wednesday evening in the lair of the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Lebanon lost 1-0 to Oman. A useful preparation match despite the defeat, two weeks before the continuation of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers.

Lebanon started the match well—until the 4th minute. On a sharp through ball, Issam Al-Sabhi found himself one-on-one with Mostafa Matar and calmly opened the scoring. A sudden chill on Lebanese ambitions—but not enough to bring down Miodrag Radulović’s men.

The Cedars quickly lifted their heads. Uninhibited, they imposed their rhythm, maintained possession, and pressured an Omani defense that was at times pinned back. Despite several interesting situations, the final touch was painfully lacking, and the scoreboard didn’t change again.

A Balanced Second Half
After the break, the Lebanese confirmed their positive intentions, showing greater tactical control and cohesion despite an incomplete squad. The Montenegrin coach took advantage of this full-scale test to rotate his squad: no fewer than eleven players took the field, including two new internationals, Hassan Farhat in defense and Karim Mekawi on the wing.

Among the evening’s standouts were midfielder Walid Shour—instrumental in ball recovery—and full-back Hussein Zein, who was highly active until replaced by Nassar Nassar. In attack, Sami Merhej and Majed Osman tried to shake the opposing block, without success.

A Useful Test Before Serious Matters
Despite the defeat, the overall performance was reassuring. The Lebanese selection, still under construction but ambitious, showed great promise against a higher-ranked opponent involved in the race for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

All eyes now turn to June’s official fixtures. Lebanon will need to build confidence and secure points to keep their 2027 Asian Cup qualification hopes alive.