Comment: Gauging Pakistan’s Olympics qualifiers odds
This year has marked the renaissance of international football activities in Pakistan.
This year has marked the renaissance of international football activities in Pakistan. Currently the under-23 team is gearing up for the 2012 Olympics qualifiers, then in March Pakistan will host a three-match series against Palestine and, thereafter, the national team will contest in the World Cup qualifiers.
It happens to be a busy and important year for Pakistan football. Subsequently, the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has replaced Akhter Mohiuddin by seasoned campaigner Tariq Lutfi at the post of the head coach, after the former failed to impress in the Asian Games held in China. On the other hand, Lutfi has been successful in coaching the Pakistan women footballers in various tenures and recently guided the girls to the semi-final of the SAFF Championship.
Although, the standard and ranking of the football team is in abyss, the 2012 Olympics football event is one of those competitions which provides a reasonable opportunity for the “emerging” football nations to excel at international level.
A format ensuring equality for all nations
Firstly, unlike the Asian Championship competitions there is no A, B or C category of football nations. In a standard set of format, teams ranked from 13 to 35 will compete in the first round on knock-out basis. The winners will then meet with the top 13-ranked teams in round-robin for further progress.
This format provides equal opportunities to all nations to compete and win, resulting in teams like Cameroon and Nigeria winning the gold in 2000 and 1996, respectively. Pakistan themselves qualified to the second round of the 2008 Olympics qualifiers after defeating Singapore on 5-3 aggregate.
A tournament of the youth rather than professionals
Secondly, it’s a tournament of the youth rather than professional footballers. Under-23 footballers are allowed to contest in the qualifiers and the main event with only three over-aged players being allowed in the squad. That’s why countries, where football is not structured but played passionately among the youngsters, often yield surprising results.
For the 2012 London Olympics, Asia has been given three-and-a-half berths and Pakistan is pitted against Malaysia in the first round of the AFC qualifiers with the first leg to be played in Kuala Lumpur on February 23 and the return leg in Pakistan on March 9. The winner will qualify for the second round of the qualifiers.
‘Positive mindset’ key to victory
About the chances of success, coach Lutfi believes that “with a positive mindset” the team can fare well in the qualifiers. Pakistan is expected to include a handful of foreign players with Pakistani origin like Irfan Khan, Atif Bashir and Yousuf Butt in the squad. Fortunately these players may leave a lasting impact on the football world at the youth circuit. Besides, this time around the federation has also organised a comprehensive training camp in Lahore, providing enough time for foreigners to acclimatise in Asia and assimilate with the rest of the team. Therefore, no doubt a competitive show of fine football can be expected.
The writer is a freelance sports journalist
Published in The Express Tribune, January 30th 2011.
It happens to be a busy and important year for Pakistan football. Subsequently, the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has replaced Akhter Mohiuddin by seasoned campaigner Tariq Lutfi at the post of the head coach, after the former failed to impress in the Asian Games held in China. On the other hand, Lutfi has been successful in coaching the Pakistan women footballers in various tenures and recently guided the girls to the semi-final of the SAFF Championship.
Although, the standard and ranking of the football team is in abyss, the 2012 Olympics football event is one of those competitions which provides a reasonable opportunity for the “emerging” football nations to excel at international level.
A format ensuring equality for all nations
Firstly, unlike the Asian Championship competitions there is no A, B or C category of football nations. In a standard set of format, teams ranked from 13 to 35 will compete in the first round on knock-out basis. The winners will then meet with the top 13-ranked teams in round-robin for further progress.
This format provides equal opportunities to all nations to compete and win, resulting in teams like Cameroon and Nigeria winning the gold in 2000 and 1996, respectively. Pakistan themselves qualified to the second round of the 2008 Olympics qualifiers after defeating Singapore on 5-3 aggregate.
A tournament of the youth rather than professionals
Secondly, it’s a tournament of the youth rather than professional footballers. Under-23 footballers are allowed to contest in the qualifiers and the main event with only three over-aged players being allowed in the squad. That’s why countries, where football is not structured but played passionately among the youngsters, often yield surprising results.
For the 2012 London Olympics, Asia has been given three-and-a-half berths and Pakistan is pitted against Malaysia in the first round of the AFC qualifiers with the first leg to be played in Kuala Lumpur on February 23 and the return leg in Pakistan on March 9. The winner will qualify for the second round of the qualifiers.
‘Positive mindset’ key to victory
About the chances of success, coach Lutfi believes that “with a positive mindset” the team can fare well in the qualifiers. Pakistan is expected to include a handful of foreign players with Pakistani origin like Irfan Khan, Atif Bashir and Yousuf Butt in the squad. Fortunately these players may leave a lasting impact on the football world at the youth circuit. Besides, this time around the federation has also organised a comprehensive training camp in Lahore, providing enough time for foreigners to acclimatise in Asia and assimilate with the rest of the team. Therefore, no doubt a competitive show of fine football can be expected.
The writer is a freelance sports journalist
Published in The Express Tribune, January 30th 2011.