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Starting XI (4-3-3): Rami Hamadi, Musab Al-Battat, Michel Termanini, Yaser Hamed Mayor, Samer Jondi (Camilo Saldaña), Ataa Jaber, Mohammed Rashid (Sameh Maraaba), Mahmoud Abu Warda (Jonathan Cantillana) (Mohammed Yamin), Alaa Aldeen Hassan (Ali Abu Alfa), Tamer Seyam, Saleh Chihadeh.
Goals: Abu Warda (Tamer Seyam) 2’
Recap: Makram Dabbobub went with a largely unchanged lineup handing a debut to Alaa Aldeen Hassan on the left wing and reinstating captain Musab Al-Battat at right back.
The rest of the playing staff had started Palestine’s last friendly- a 2-0 loss to China- in June. With barely 120 seconds on the clock, Palestine found themselves ahead; courtesy of the side’s veterans. Musab Al-Battat got a counter attack started and pushed the ball into the path of Tamer Seyam who waited patiently to send in a luscious cross into the box. The onrushing Mahmoud Abu Warda stretched his diminutive body and succeeded in giving Palestine the lead with the third international goal of his career.
Palestine’s reaction to the goal was puzzling. They had taken a lead with their first meaningful kicks of the game but were unable to get out of their own half. Oman had figured out early on that Palestine’s left flank could be exploited and went at Samer Jondi mercilessly. Things got worse for Palestine when Abu Warda limped off with an injury nine minutes into the game. His replacement, Jonathan Cantillana, would be involved in the Omani equalizer as both he and Samer Jondi could have done better to prevent Abdallah Fawwaz’s cross that lead to Omar Al-Malki’s goal.
Palestine were on the ropes for the rest of the first half. A talk during the cooling break did little to help. Muhsen Al-Ghassani nearly gave the lead to Oman with an audacious chip. Moments later Oman had a penalty- it was a soft call but would have been confirmed had VAR been available for this game. Al-Ghassani would get his goal from the spot beating Rami Hamadi, who guessed correctly but could not palm the effort away.
Saleh Chihadeh could have equalized in the 45th minute but could not connect properly with Tamer Seyam’s deep cross from the left wing.
Hamadi was then called upon before halftime to stop Abdelrahman Al-Mushaifiri from doubling Oman’s lead. The Shefa-’Amr native showed no hesitation in rushing off of his line to stop the imminent danger.
Al-Ahmar went into the dressing room in a position of dominance leaving Palestine with a lot to think about over the break. To their credit, Palestine did improve in the second half and whatever pep talk was given to Alaa Aldeen Hassan in the dressing room worked wonders. The Abna Sakhnin winger was inventive and brave in the second half and nearly scored off of a clever back heel effort before being substituted.
The other debutants also gave a good account of themselves in cameo roles. Camilo Saldaña looked more assured than Samer Jondi at left back and may have earned himself an opportunity to start vs. Vietnam.
Ali Abu Alfa provided a spark as well and could have had a last gasp equalizer if not for the heroics of Fayiz Al-Rashidi who denied him and Saleh Chihadeh in the dying embers of the game.
What I Liked: Palestine needs depth and I think it found some interesting pieces today who proved themselves in a difficult situation away from home. Ali Abu Alfa and Alaa Aldeen Hassan can be a useful options on the wing.
Camilo Saldaña is a viable candidate to start games at left back.
It was also very mature of Makram Dabboub not to throw on Oday Dabbagh whose minutes should be managed very carefully in the lead up to games that matter.
What I didn’t Like: The response to going up 1-0 should have been more brave. I know Oman can burn you with their speed but they did that as Palestine waited for them in a mid and low block. Also, I get that some players were going to be rusty- neither CB has played a game in the 2023/24 season but this is more reason not to include a guy like Jonathan who hasn’t played a game in nearly half a year! He was trotted on and did absolutely nothing and had to be hauled off again. It is time to call somebody else in- either Muhamed Alghoul or a player from the U23s. Abu Warda out of position is a better option out of all the current incumbents.
What’s Next: Palestine take on Vietnam in Hanoi on September 11th at 15:30 Jerusalem time.
