KARACHI: Pakistan’s talented young centre-back Syed Abdullah Shah is optimistic ahead of round one of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Asian qualifiers, where the Shaheens will face Cambodia.
These matches will be held on October 12 and 17 this year, in which the first stage will be hosted by Cambodia and the second stage will be hosted by Pakistan.
Pakistan also faced Cambodia in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers but were defeated by an aggregate score of 4–1 in both legs in June 2019.
However, Shah was confident that Pakistan, who have never won a World Cup qualifier before, will be adequately prepared for the match against Cambodia as they face a tough AFC U23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024 qualifier ahead of the crucial match. Opponents will have to face.
Pakistan will travel to Bahrain to face Japan on September 6, hosts on September 9 and Palestine on September 12 in Group D of the U-23 event.
“It’s going to be another clash since we face Cambodia in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers as well as in 2019,” Shah told JEE News on Thursday.
“We are really confident about our chances as the majority of our squad is U23. Before the World Cup qualifiers, we will play matches against Japan, Bahrain and Palestine in the AFC U23 Asian Cup qualifiers, which are stronger opponents than Cambodia. These matches will give us confidence ahead of the World Cup qualifiers.
Abdullah Shah was an absolute wall against Nepal! 🦁
— Pakistan Football Federation (@TheRealPFF) November 23, 2022
Shah was undoubtedly one of Pakistan's stand out player in the game against Nepal making crunching tackles and winning every ariel duel! 💥
A future superstar to say the very least 🇵🇰⚽️#PakistanFootball #DilSayFootball pic.twitter.com/p83Jr9GtRv
According to the current ranking of FIFA, Cambodia is at the 176th position while Pakistan is at the 201st position.
The winner of the Pakistan-Cambodia clash will join Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Tajikistan in Group G for the second round of qualifiers.
Shah also hoped that Pakistan’s squad would be complete before the World Cup qualifier against Cambodia. He hinted at the inclusion of Adeel Nabi, who plays for Cypriot top-flight side Doxa Katokopias FC, and former Pakistan captain Kaleemullah Khan — who last played for Pakistan in 2020 during their tour of Malaysia. .
“There will be two to three good additions to the squad. Adil Nabi may join us and Kaleemullah may also return. The new additions will complete our squad,” he said.
“Winning and losing is in the hands of Allah but we will do our best on the field.”
It may be noted that Islamabad’s Jinnah Stadium is likely to host the home league against Cambodia after proper renovations including the pitch and floodlights.
Pakistan last hosted a FIFA/AFC World Cup qualifier in 2011, when Bangladesh played at the Punjab Stadium in Lahore.
Meanwhile, Jinnah Stadium last hosted an international match during the 2014 SAFF Women’s Championship.
Shah, who became the youngest Pakistani player to feature in a foreign league in 2022 after joining Dhivehi Sifainge club in the Maldives Second Division at the age of 21, also highlighted playing on home soil.
“I have played a lot of matches in the senior team as well as at the junior level but none of them have been at home,” he said.
“Playing at home will definitely be beneficial for us as we know how the pitch behaves at the Jinnah Stadium in Islamabad or elsewhere in the country. We will also have the support of the local crowd, which will help us perform well. will encourage. field.”
He also spoke about playing alongside fellow defender Isa Suleiman, who switched his national qualification from England to represent Pakistan earlier this year.
Sulaiman, who has also served as England Under-19 captain, was recently part of the Pakistan squad for the Four Nations Cup in Mauritius and the SAFF Championship in India.
He said that playing with Isa Suleman has been very beneficial for us. He is truly the essence of a player. They guide us in the field due to their experience which helps us to improve in the areas where we are lacking.
“Isa supports us even if we make mistakes on the field. Mamoon [Musa Khan] and I have learned a lot from him during our time with the team.”
Pakistan will need to improve to qualify for the next round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers as they have lost all eight matches, scoring just one goal, to end a 15-month ban by FIFA last year. After
