Japan vs Oman

Asia’s third round in Qatar 2022 qualifying kicks off this midweek as Japan play host to Oman at Panasonic Stadium Suita in their Group B curtain-raiser.

The hosts have made light work of their World Cup qualifying campaign so far, finishing top of the second-stage Group F with all eight victories and a +44 goal difference (GF:46, GA:2). Albeit against lower-ranked opponents, the ‘Samurai Blue’ won each of their four home World Cup qualifying fixtures in the ongoing series by at least a three-goal margin, averaging 6.25 goals scored per match in that period. Since succumbing to a 2-0 defeat to Mexic in a friendly meeting in November 2020, the hosts have racked up a five-game winning streak in home internationals, netting 3+ goals on four occasions in the process. That streak looks likely to be extended here, considering Japan’s 100% H2H home record in the 21st century. They registered a shutout in all four victories in that time.

On the other hand, none of Oman’s eight matches in the previous qualifying round ended level (W6, L2), as they finished runners-up to Qatar in Group E. Curiously, five of the eight games won/lost in that sequence yielded a narrow one-goal margin, with the remaining two seeing the winner on the day prevail by precisely three goals. Oman entering this fixture as overwhelming outsiders comes as no surprise, considering they have never beaten Japan across their last 11 meetings (D2, L9), drawing a blank eight times in the process. Having that said, the visitors have won three competitive away matches in a row, netting 2+ goals on each occasion. It’s also worth noting that they opened the scoring by the 22nd minute in each of those three wins.