Lankan footballers off to Seychelles
The newly picked 23-member Sri Lanka football team left for Seychelles yesterday to play two international friendly matches. The captaincy of the side has been laid upon Navy SC midfielder E.A. Sanjeewa and this will be a great opportunity for the Sri Lankan footballers to gather momentum after being regrouped.
The present Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL) hierarchy disbanded the national football pool after their poor performance at the South Asian Football Federation Championship and the Al-Akbar International Tournament held in Palestine almost three months ago.
The revamped national side will come under the purview of the Serbian coach Nikola Kavazovic, who was instrumental in helping Tajikistan win the AFC Challenge Trophy. Head coach and technical expert Kavazovic will be assisted Sampath Perera who is the coach, Dudley Steinwall as the assistant coach and Mahinda Galagedara as the goalkeeper trainer.
The side includes fresh talent as well as some members from the previous Sri Lanka team that was disbanded. The two friendlies will be played at the Unity Stadium, which has an artificial surface. The first game will be played on Tuesday followed by the second match on Thursday.
The games will be played at 4.00pm Sri Lanka time on both days.
The final 23-member squad was pruned down from a heavy load of 117 players after a three-day exhausting trials, held on June 28, 29 and 30. The final squad underwent a residential training camp since July 3.
The FFSL issuing an official statement said that the Serbian coach is highly pleased with the amount of commitment from the players. “Though the training was hampered by the ongoing Dialog Champions League Tournament, as the players had to be released for club matches. But we are confident that the National team will perform to their ability on this tour of Seychelles. I’m impressed with the tremendous talent of the players and commitment towards training,” Kavazovic had said.
Balendra Anthony will accompany the team as the manager. The team will return to the island next Saturday.
| Sri Lanka squad:
Sujan Perera, Charitha Ratnayake, Asikur Rahuman, Eranda Prasad, Mohamed Rizkhan, M.K. Hakeem, Zarwan Johar, Lahiru Tharaka Silva, M.N.M. Fazal, E.A. Sanjeeva, Nipuna Bandara, Dasun Paranavitarana, Kavidu Ishan, Mohamed Rifnaz, Subash Madushan, Hashan Chandraratne, P.T. Senanayake, Tharindu Lakmal, Nalaka Roshan, Chameera Sajith, Madhusan de Silva, M.N.M. Imran, A.W.A. T. Eranga. |