Pakistan begin training camp for SAFF Championship
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan began their training camp for the upcoming SAFF Championship on Monday, with head coach Nolberto Solano hoping the national team can build on the momentum gained at the FIFA ASEAN Cup earlier this month.
“We did very well at the FIFA ASEAN Cup, and now we need to build on that performance at the SAFF Championship,” the head coach told the players ahead of their first training session.
Solano was referring to Pakistan’s impressive showing in Indonesia, where they held the Philippines to a 2-2 draw and put up a strong fight against Vietnam before losing 4-2. Pakistan had opened their campaign with a 4-0 defeat to Thailand.
Pakistan also welcomed their new strength and conditioning coach, Eduardo Seixas, from Portugal. Seixas said he was looking forward to working with the team and helping the players achieve their goals.
Pakistan will face India in their opening group match at the SAFF Championship on November 5 before taking on the Maldives on November 8. The top two teams from the group will advance to the semi-finals.
Players at Monday’s training camp:
Goalkeepers: Hassan Ali, Zulqarnain
Defenders: Mamoon Musa Khan, Haseeb Khan, Mohibullah, Waqar Baloch, Mohammad Adeel, Ali Khan, Haris Zeb, Junaid Shah, Abdul Rehman, Qadeer Khan
Midfielders: Umair Ali, Mohammad Junaid, Alamgir Ghazi, Hayyan Khattak, Zain-ul-Abideen, Tufail Shinwari
Forwards: Ibrahim Siddiqui, Najeebullah, Kaleemullah, Umar Nawaz
