FIFA World Cup qualifiers: Nogueira confident team will be ready in time to face Cambodia

KARACHI: Pakistan football team’s head coach Jose Antonio Nogueira on Thursday said that they would not take Cambodia lightly, adding, he believes in his players and they would put in their best in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

“We are not taking Cambodia lightly. They have been making great progress over the years. They are playing good football but my team is motivated and in high spirit and will get ready for the challenge” Nogueira said.

“Our team is balanced and I have high hopes from my charges,” the Brazilian was quick to add. Nogueira is making all out efforts in Bahrain to prepare the side for the two-legged qualifiers against Cambodia to be held on June 6 and 11.

Pakistan team camp, which also carries foreign-based players, began at Manama on Tuesday at a time when one such camp had already started from May 5 in Islamabad under the auspices of Syed Ashfaq Hussain-led Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) which cannot field the team in the qualifiers as the same body is not recognised by both FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

Nogueira has in his support staff Brazilian goalkeeping coach Marcello Costa and Brazilian Beto Portella as the physical trainer besides Pakistan-based officials.

“We have already made our plan and know how to prepare the side in the stipulated time-frame. The players are not in bad shape and they will be able to get ready ahead of the first leg in Cambodia,” Nogueira said.

Pakistan had hired the services of Nogueira early last year at a time when Lahore High Court restored Faisal Saleh Hayat as the PFF head which had also forced FIFA to lift the ban that helped Pakistan resume its football activities.

After featuring in last year’s Asian Games and SAFF Cup, Pakistan also played a FIFA friendly against Palestine in Al-Ram before moving to Doha in December to hold camp to prepare for the FIFA World Cup and Olympic qualifiers.

However, during that time a change came as under the Supreme Court-ordered elections, Syed Ashfaq Hussain Shah got elected as the PFF Chief. The same body took possession of the PFF headquarters in Lahore and its accounts as per the apex court instructions and so placed a full stop once again on Pakistan’s international engagement as Ashfaq’s body is not recognised by FIFA and the AFC.

However FIFA-recognised PFF decided eventually to go for a camp on foreign soil in order to ensure Pakistan’s team participation in World Cup qualifiers. The Cambodia-Pakistan two-legged round winners will qualify for the second round to be held later this summer.