Pakistan will play back-to-back matches against Saudi Arabia and Tajikistan
Pakistan squad will gather in Islamabad on Thursday (tomorrow) to begin their preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.
Shaheens will play back-to-back matches against Saudi Arabia and Tajikistan next month in the second round of the qualifiers.
Shaheens will host Saudi Arabia on June 6 at Jinnah Stadium Islamabad. And it will be followed by a match against Tajikistan on June 11 at the Pamir Stadium in Dushanbe.
Pakistan are at the bottom of the group as they have lost all four matches they have played so far. Pakistan started their Group G journey with a 4-0 defeat by Saudi Arabia in Al Ahsa in November. After which, in the same month, they faced a 6-1 defeat by Tajikistan in Islamabad.
After that, Jordan defeated Pakistan 3-0 in a match played in Ramadan in Islamabad. While Jordan then beat the Green Shirts 7-0 at the Amman International Stadium. Pakistan’s English head coach Stephen Constantine recently watched the National Challenge Cup matches.
According to sources, there is a strong hope of seeing new faces in the camp held at Jinnah Stadium.
KRL goal man Tanveer Mumtaz and his midfielder Junaid have also been invited to the camp, sources say that PAF midfielder Faheem Khan and his Under-16 left back Abdul Rehman will also be seen in the camp.
Coach Stephen Constantine has drawn up a 32-man roster, including five officials.
Sources said Stephen had visited Kuala Lumpur to attend the third AFC National Coaches Conference which ended on May 9.
Sources further said that Adeel Rizki attended the conference as Pakistan Women’s coach. However, he was seen witnessing the finale of the event. which was completed by NC in a period of one year.