KARACHI: Whenever football resumes in the country, Tariq Lutfi will have a job on his hand.

The former Pakistan football team coach is aiming to take Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) into the Pakistan Premier Football League (PPFL).

Lutfi, a serial PPFL winner with Khan Research Laboratories (KRL), took up the head-coach job at second-division Pakistan Football Federation League (PPFL) side SSGC over the weekend on a rolling contract and he’s already set big goals for his new side.

“As soon as football resumes in the country, we need to take a good shot at gaining promotion to the PPFL,” Lutfi, who guided KRL to three PPFL titles after taking over in 2011 before leaving last year, told Dawn on Sunday.

Football has been at a standstill in the country after the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) split into two factions in the lead-up to its presidential elections in June last year.

But in June this year, the Lahore High Court (LHC) ordered fresh elections of the PFF within four months.

“The aim is to have a team ready once football resumes,” Lutfi added. “And I’d like to help the team realise its aim of making it to the top division as soon as possible.”

At SSGC, Lutfi will join hands with some his former KRL players including Saadullah and Bilawal-ur-Rehman.

“SSGC have worked for the promotion of sports and their hockey and cricket teams have enjoyed success recently,” Lutfi said. “They’ve added some good players over the last few years and I hope the football team does well under me.”

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2016