K-Electric geared up for AFC Cup qualifiers

Pakistan champions face Bhutanese club Druk United in first match on Tuesday

KARACHI: Reigning Pakistan Premier Football League Champions K-Electric (KE) will kick off their 2016 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup qualifying campaign against hosts Druk United in Bhutan on Tuesday.

This is the first time that KE is featuring in the Cup qualifiers and coach Majid Shafiq, an English Football Association-certified coach, is confident that the players would be able to acclimatise to the high altitudes of Thimpu and return with a positive result.

“The players have been training hard and we have had no issues at the training sessions,” Majid told The Express Tribune. “The high altitude can be a negative, but we have a very good pitch. In fact we had a very tough first session in which we tested the players for speed and endurance and how well they recovered from exertion. The players have
acclimatised well and they want to win.”

KE, led by former national skipper Essa Khan, also have two Nigerians — striker Sunday Oludey and attacking midfielder Wilsom Obayuni — within their ranks and Majid believes that the added firepower will play a crucial role in the all-important matches.

“Both Sunday and Wilsom joined us late but they are training hard to catch up,” he said. “Sunday is highly intelligent on the pitch and has the ability to unsettle defenders, while Wilsom has a strong presence in midfield.”

Meanwhile, UK-based Shani Abbasi, who will be playing for a Pakistani club for the first time, said that the players are confident of victory.

“We have no doubt in our ability. Everyone in the team is feeling the pressure because we’re not only playing just for ourselves or KE but for Pakistan too,” said the 21-year-old.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 11^th,  2015.

Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.