Bahrain national football team kick off training

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain’s senior men’s national football team have kicked off their latest local training gathering at the Hamad Town Club premises. The nationals are gearing up for a pair of international friendly matches over the next week and a half, which are part of their preparations for their upcoming competitions including the FIFA Arab Cup this December

. Head coach Helio Sousa supervised the start of training with a team of 23 players. There was a last-minute change to the squad list, with Mohammed Abdulwahab of Al Ahli Club replacing Abdulwahab Al Malood of Muharraq, who suffered an injury during a league match last week.

The rest of the team includes Abbas Alasfoor, Sayed Hashim Isa, Hazza Ali, Jassim Al Shaikh, Kumail Al Aswad, Mohammed Marhoon, Sayed Redha Isa, and Sayed Mahdi Baqer from Riffa; Sayed Mohamed Jaffar, Waleed Al Hayam and Rashed Alhooti from Muharraq; Ahmed Bughammar, Ebrahim Lutfallah, Sayed Dhiya Saeed and Mahdi Humaidan from Al Khaldiya; Jassim Khulaif and Mohamed Al Rumaihi from East Riffa; Ahmed Merza from Hidd; Mohamed Al Shaikh from Malkiya; Abdulla Hazza and Ali Haram from Kuwaiti club Al Tadhamon SC; and Ali Madan from UAE outfit Al Urooba.

Bahrain’s two international friendly matches during this training period are against Haiti on Wednesday and then against Jordan on September 7, which is the final day of their camp.

The FIFA Arab Cup 2021 will be held in Doha, with the participation of 16 national teams. It will kick off on November 30 and continue until December 18.

Bahrain are in Group A, which also features hosts Qatar, Iraq and Oman. After the tournament’s opening stage, which comprises four groups of four teams each, the top two from each group move on to the knockout quarter-finals.

The tournament is being delivered by FIFA as a prelude to the FIFA World Cup 2022. It is seen as a vital opportunity to test operations and facilities ahead of next year’s global showcase.

The FIFA Arab Cup will take place in the same time slot as the World Cup, with the finals of both competitions to be held exactly one year apart.