Bahrain will face Canada tonight in a friendly match for the first time ever at the Khalifa Sports City Stadium in Isa Town … aiming for regional double delight from the experience.
This match comes as part of preparations for the Gulf Cup 2023, which is expected to be held in the city of Basra in Iraq in January.
Bahrain, who are the defending champions, have been drawn alongside Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE.
Ahead of the match, Bahrain coach Helio Sousa said: “This match will help us develop as a team.
“We have to show that we are headed in the right direction and growing.
“Players know that what we did in the past is not good enough for the future and we have to keep improving.
“Each day, the players will have to be stronger than before.
“The main aim of this match is to work hard and build ourselves up.
“The upcoming games against Canada and Serbia will be a fantastic experience in order to prepare for the upcoming major tournaments, especially the 2023 Asian Cup.
“We want that challenge, we want our players to face players of world class quality.”
On the upcoming Gulf Cup and West Asian championship, both of which Bahrain are defending champions, Sousa stated that a winning habit is crucial if Bahrain are to defend their titles.
“Every training session we do is to ensure we are in our best possible condition to win the next game,” he added.
“We have to win, and we have to keep winning, that is the only way we can reach the next stage.
“Winning the competitions twice will show that we have quality.”
When asked if Bahrain could play more friendlies against top opposition like Canada and Serbia in the future Sousa said: “They will do it if they think it will be a good experience for them.
“The association has put in a lot of work, so maybe one day we can play against such opposition regularly – we would like to play against them if possible.”
Canada, meanwhile, will use this match to prepare for the 2022 Fifa World Cup Finals which will be held later this month in Qatar.
The visitors qualified for their first World Cup Finals since 1986 after topping the Concacaf qualifying group, ahead of Mexico and the US.
They have been drawn against Belgium, Croatia and Morocco and will play their first match against the Belgians on November 23.
Canadian coach, Englishman John Herdman has called up a 21-man squad composed mainly of players from the American Major League Soccer.
They are expected to field the likes of Samuel Piette, who has European experience under his belt, as well as FC Toronto legend Jonathan Osorio and the likes of Lucas Cavallini who has totalled an impressive 17 goals in 32 games for Les Rouges.
Herdman has revealed Bahrain was chosen as a friendly match due to their good record against Concacaf teams, “We are aware of Bahrain,” he said.
“They will be a tough opposition to play against.
“They have beaten the likes of Curacao recently and put up a strong showing against Panama as well.
“Tactically, they are a top level team and are very organised, especially defensively.
“They rarely concede goals, so it will not be easy and the game will test us.”
Herdman has also said that the match will be very important to help their team assimilate to the climate ahead of the World Cup Finals later this month.
“The desert conditions will provide a tough test for us,” he added.
“Most of the players have never been in the Middle East before, so this will be a unique experience.
“The European-based players especially will have to hit the ground running and most players in the team have not played football since the MLS season ended on October 8.
“The climate will be physically taxing on the players in the match, and that is exactly what we want.”
nader@gdnmedia.bh
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