Thailand easily defeated Oman on Tuesday 3-0, avenging a 2010 loss to the Arab country in the same stage of World Cup qualifying. The victory positions Thailand to earn a spot in the final qualifying round, after they nearly upset Australia over the weekend. The victory eased some of the pain of a 2-1 loss to Australia last week that had left the three-time ASEAN champions in need of vital points to continue their push back toward the World Cup. “I'm very impressed with the match today. It's because of our hard work after the match with Australia,” said Thai coach Winfried Schaefer after the match at a press conference. “We have three points today but we still have a tough job ahead playing Saudi Arabia. We have to keep working hard.” Sompong Soleb scored the first goal in the 35th minute while Muang Thong United's Teerasil Dangda outran the defence to ease the ball into the net 6 minutes later. An own-goal by Rashid Al Farsi in injury time rounded off a poor performance by Oman, who have a tough road ahead if they are to advance to Asia's final qualifying stages, after a goalless draw against Saudi Arabia last week. BM
