Pakistan football team’s camp for Syria clash in Lahore

LAHORE: The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) Normalisation Committee (NC) has decided to shift the national team’s training camp from Saudi Arabia to Lahore ahead of their crucial AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers match against Syria.

The change in venue was prompted by logistical challenges, particularly the high number of Umrah travellers during Ramadan, which could have led to significant delays in processing visas.

To avoid any last-minute complications, the PFF opted to hold the preparatory camp at home. Pakistan are set to face Syria on March 25 in Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia, the same venue where they previously played a 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifier against Saudi Arabia, suffering a 4-0 defeat.

Players based in Pakistan have been instructed to report at Lahore on Thursday while foreign-based players are expected to join the squad directly in Al-Ahsa.

English head coach Stephen Constantine will oversee the camp. Pakistan have been placed in Group E of the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers alongside Syria, Afghanistan, and Myanmar. Their campaign kicks off against Syria on March 25, followed by a home fixture against Myanmar on June 10 in Islamabad. The team will also face Afghanistan in a double-header in October before concluding the group stage against Myanmar on March 31, 2026.

Players called for camp:

Goal-Keepers: Yousuf Butt, Saqib Hanif, Abdul Basit and Adam Khan Defenders: Abdullah Iqbal, Easah Suliman, Haseeb Khan, Junaid Shah, Mamoon Moosa, Mohammad Fazal, Abdul Rehman and Waqar Ihtisam.

Midfielders: Alamgir Ghazi, Ali Uzair, Ali Zafar, Muhammad Umar Hayat, Rahis Nabi, Toqeer ul Hassan, Umair Ali and Moin Ahmed. Forwards: Fareedullah, Harun Hamid, Imran Kayani, Mckeal Abdullah, Abdul Samad, Shayak Dost and Muhammad Adeel Younas.