Pakistan need rhythm before SAFF Cup: Shehzad

KARACHI: Pakistan football team technical coordinator and former head coach Shehzad Anwar on Thursday hoped that the team would catch rhythm ahead of the SAFF Cup 2018 pencilled in for September 4-15 in Bangladesh.

“The experience of playing a few practice matches on foreign soil which Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) is trying to arrange and some group matches in the 18th Asian Games in Indonesia would help national team to catch rhythm ahead of the SAFF Cup,” Shehzad told ‘The News’ in an interview from Lahore.

However, he was quick to add that three wasted years have damaged the country’s football and so the team needs great support.

“International exposure for the team at this stage is very important,” said Shehzad, also an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Pro License holder.

In SAFF Cup, Pakistan have been clubbed in Group A with the hosts and former winners Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. Pakistan will begin their journey in the region’s vital event with the match against Nepal on September 4. It would be followed by their matches against Bangladesh on September 6 and Bhutan on September 8.

India, the most successful side of the SAFF Cup with seven crowns to their credit, are in Group B with former champions Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Two teams from each group will progress to the semi-finals.

Shehzad said that three years of inactivity is a big disadvantage for Pakistan. “You know Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan remained engaged all these three years playing in international circuit while we missed international exposure during the same time which will matter a lot,” said Shehzad, who also remained head coach of Pakistan team in the 2013 SAFF Cup in Nepal.

But before SAFF Cup, Pakistan will only fulfill the formalities of taking part in the toughest 32-team Asian Games, which will also mark return of the country to international football for the first time since May 2015. Asiad will be held in Indonesia from August 18 to September 2.

In the Asian Games an under-23 side with three senior players will be fielded. Senior sides of the region will feature in the SAFF Cup. National camp is in operation in Lahore under the Brazilian coach Jose Antonio Nogueira. The camp, which had been started on May 25, will experience a break for Eid-ul-Fitr from June 12 to 19.

India are the defending champions following their success in 2015 when they overcame Afghanistan in the final. Afghanistan are not competing this year having joined the Central Asian Football Association (CAFF). The Bangabandhu National Stadium will host all the matches in September with the top two teams from each group qualifying for the semis-finals. Besides India’s seven SAFF Cup titles, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Maldives and Sri Lanka have lifted one crown each.

Meanwhile this would be the first time when foreign-based players will join camp around two months ahead of the SAFF Cup. Birmingham-born full-back Zeeshan Rehman, Denmark-based Pakistan’s captain Hassan Bashir, striker Mohammad Ali and goalkeeper Yousuf Butt

are expected to join camp in early July.