The Gulf side were seconds away from causing a major upset in their Group A opener against Australia on Sunday but, with a 1-0 victory just two minutes away, Tim Cahill snatched a dramatic late draw for the Socceroos.

That result, coupled with Thailand's draw against Iraq, has left the group wide open with all four sides on one point and Bolton Wanderers shotstopper Al Habsi believes Gabriel Calderon's team are in prime position to qualify for the next phase for the first time in their history.

He said: "For the players, the Australia game was probably the biggest of their life. But we have to forget about that game now and think about Thailand.

"I think we need to play every game like a final.

"We will probably go into the game against Thailand much more relaxed. We did very well against Australia but we have to do that again, giving 100% and keep going until the end."

The first games of the AFC Asian Cup have thrown up a few surprises with three of the four co-hosts upsetting the odds and getting an unexpected result.

Iraq, looking to once again reach at least the quarter-finals, were held by the Thais, while Indonesia and Vietnam collected victories against Bahrain and the UAE respectively.

Al Habsi believes Thailand will provide a different test to that they faced against Australia, but is confident Oman are in a better position than the rest of the teams in the group.

He continued: "Thailand are a good team, they are playing at home with plenty of supporters.

"There is a big difference between the Thailand team and Australia, with the physicality and quality of the players.

"Everyone is on one point but maybe our position is much better than other teams. We have already played Australia whereas Iraq and Thailand still have to play them."