PFF urged to induct more coaches for national team

KARACHI: Former Pakistan football team assistant coach Nasir Ismail on Sunday said that Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) should induct a few more coaches into the support staff of the Brazilian coach Jose Antonio Nogueira who is supervising national team camp in Lahore in connection with preparations for the Asian Games and SAFF Cup to be held later this summer.

“Currently Nogueira has only two assistant coaches including Mohammad Habib and Mohammad Essa with Shehzad Anwar as coordinator with him. There are around two dozens AFC License A coaches in Pakistan and it would be appropriate if minimum three more coaches from the same lot are added to Nogueira’s support staff. The decision will enable these coaches to learn from Nogueira who belongs to Brazil which is a global power in football,” Nasir told ‘The News’.

“And the second thing is that a Brazilian trainer Jose Portella is also there in the camp. So if you have more coaches in the camp it will help them also witness Brazilian trainer how he works on fitness and conditioning side of the players and so they will learn more things which will help them to utilize this knowledge in their careers,” Nasir said.

He also stressed that Nogueira should mainly focus on the SAFF Cup. “Pakistan has hired the services of Nogueira for senior team and it would be much better if he focuses on SAFF Cup and trains senior side instead of Under-23 which will take part in the Asian Games,” Nasir pointed out. “There is no one in the 20 to 25 License A coaches who could be given the Under-23 team,” Nasir questioned.

He said three coaches should be sent with the Under-23 side and three with the SAFF Cup side. “Mohammad Essa has no experience of coaching with the national team so he should be sent with the Under-23 side,” Nasir said.

About the induction of former Pakistan’s captain Jaffar Khan as one of the three goalkeeping coaches Nasir said it was good to groom Jaffar as he had good personality and had rendered great services for Pakistan as a goalkeeper.

He said that it was wrong decision of the selectors not to pick international defender Noor Mengal of Sui Soutern Gas Company (SSGC) for the camp. “He was part of Pakistan’s under-23 squad under Bahraini coach Mohammad Shamlan. He has switched over to SSGC from K-Electric and is a good player,” Nasir said.

He also reacted against ignoring some highly experienced players for the camp. “If the veteran Mohammad Rasool and Mohammad Ahmed have been called up for the camp why not international striker Shakir Lashari who is much better player? Similarly NBP keeper Mohammad Omar has also been left out.

He is one of the three top keepers of Pakistan. The best player and best goalie of National Challenge Cup are in the camp but the leading scorer Nazeer Khan of Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) has not been called up which is a sort of injustice. Pakistan has scoring problem and at least such players should have been invited to the camp,” Nasir pointed out.