KARACHI: Pakistan will be eager to draw level with Palestine when the two sides meet for the second football test at Karachi’s Peoples Sports Complex on Friday.
Palestine won the opening fixture of the four-match home-and-away series with a 2-1 score-line.
On Thursday, both teams held practice sessions at the stadium, where the match is set to kick off at 4.00pm. Strict security measures are in place, with a heavy contingent of police deployed in and around the stadium to ensure the safety of the teams and spectators.
Palestinian coach Bezaz Mousa was confident of an improved performance from his young side, which dominated the opening match and held on to their lead at Lahore.
He lauded the organisers for putting together a series that will be beneficial to the football teams of both nations.
“We are happy to be here and we see Pakistan as a brotherly nation. We are looking forward to hosting Pakistan football. It has been a great experience and I think we should continue to have this sporting tie in the future.”
The French-Algerian coach of Palestine said he was impressed by the footballing potential of Pakistan.
“Pakistani footballers have a great potential…and the game is moving in the right direction but they (Pakistan) have to play an increased number of international matches to make an impact in world football,” Mousa told the media at Peoples Stadium ahead of the second match.
Today’s match will be the first international fixture to be hosted at People’s Stadium after the Pakistan-UAE Asia Cup qualifier in 2006.
Organisers are expecting support for both teams in the crowd, as a large number of expatriate Palestinians reside in Pakistan, with some enrolled at the local universities.
Squads Pakistan: Muhammad Omar, Amir Gul, Manzoor Ahmed, Alamgir Khan, Ahsan Ullah, Obaid Majeed, Ansar Abbas, Ghazanfar Abbas, Faisal Iqbal, Syed Arif Hussain, Muhammad Tauseef, Muhammad Adil, Mahmood Khan, Saddam Hussain, Jadeed Khan Pathan (captain), Rizwan Asif, Kalim Ullah, Ahmed Akbar Khan, Muhammad Qais
Palestine: Mohammed Shbair, Abdallah Alsidawi (captain), Saed Abu Sleem, Ahmed Harbi Mahajna, Mohammed Al-Masri, Khaled Mahdi, Samer Hijazi, Husam Abu Saleh, Ayman Alhendi, Houssam Wadi, Murad Said, Suleiman Obeid, Hesham Salhe, Khader Yousef, Ashraf Alfawaghra, Atef Abu Bilal, Ismail Amour, Mohammed Jebreen, Mohammed Shatrit, Eyad Abugharqud, Jamal Allan
Officials: Rana Naseer Ahmed (referee), Shahid Hussain (assistant referee), Shafaat Habib (assistant referee), Rana Jehanzeb Tipu (fourth official)
