Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Male: Maldives coach Drago Mamic has told local fans “all signs are good” for the AFC Challenge Cup hosts on the eve of Monday’s Group A opener against former employers Myanmar at the National Stadium.
The 2008 SAFF Championship winners beat Laos 7–1 in a warm-up game four days ago in Male as Mamic’s side enjoyed the ideal preparations for the tournament, with the winner of the fifth and final AFC Challenge Cup qualifying for January’s AFC Asian Cup Australia 2015.
And the Maldives’ tournament opener is of particular interest as Mamic coached his opponents, now led by Raddy Avramovic, from 2009 to 2010.
“I have tried to get my team at the optimal level. We cannot disappoint and we will give 150%!” said Mamic.
“The next game is always the most important. Everyone in football knows that. Also, in this competition, there is not much time to recover after each game.
“The team with the squad that has depth will have the best chance.”
Asked if there was pressure facing his former team, Mamic said: “I don’t think about pressure.
“There is a little bit. The U-23 team when I was there is now the senior team so I know them well, although players always change.”
Avramovic, who coached Singapore for 11 years winning three ASEAN Football Championship titles, has arrived in the Maldives concerned Myanmar are under prepared due to a busy domestic schedule.
However, when asked to respond to newspaper reports suggesting Myanmar would not challenge for honours, Avramovic said: “You read the wrong paper! You cannot predict these results.”
Eight teams are competing in the Maldives with Group A also consisting of Kyrgyzstan and Palestine, while Group B is made up of the Philippines, Afghanistan, Laos and Turkmenistan.
And Kyrgyzstan and 2012 semi-finalists Palestine open the tournament at the National Stadium on Monday afternoon.
“We have been learning about Palestine. The first game is important. We are ready. It will be a hard game and we will try our best,” said Kyrgyzstan coach Sergey Dvoryankov.
“After we qualified, we had 20 friendly games and we have just spent 12 days in Kuwait. We played friendly games against Kuwait and Afghanistan. The preparation was good.”
Palestine lost the 2012 third-place play-off to the Philippines following a semi-final defeat by eventual champions DPR Korea.
“The first match is important,” said Palestine coach Jamal Mahmoud. “We have the same chance as everyone else.”
The top two teams from each group qualify for the semi-finals and the chance to follow in the footsteps of DPR Korea, winners of the AFC Challenge Cup in 2010 and 2012.