Youngsters are the country’s future: coach

Shamlan holds week-long training camp in Lahore.

KARACHI: The national football head coach Mohamed Shamlan said he will put in all his efforts towards training young, fresh players to see a stronger and more stable Pakistan team in the future.

The Bahraini coach, who took the job at the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) in August, said his long-term goal is to find a young pool of talented players who can serve the national side next year.

Shamlan, also the PFF technical director, organised a training camp with around 44 players from different clubs. For selection, he studied each local league and chose players based on their performances in the Pakistan Premier Football League (PPFL) matches in Karachi and Lahore.

The week-long camp started on December 12 in Lahore during which the PPFL clubs were given a break.

“The maximum age of players is 24 years,” Shamlan told The Express Tribune, explaining that he wanted to build a team that could last longer and keep performing in the international circuit.

“These young players are talented, but they need more training and understanding on how to play for the team and not for themselves.”

Shamlan said the training will also help players in the PPFL when the matches resume after December 22.

“This camp is a good exercise, not only for me as the head coach, but also for these players,” he said.

“I’m directly interacting with them and telling them about their mistakes.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 18^th, 2013.

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