FOOTBALL – BAHRAIN’S senior men’s football national team resumed their local training gathering last night following a few days’ break during the Eid Al Adha holidays.
The kingdom’s squad practised under the supervision of head coach Dragan Talajic and his staff at the Bahrain Football Association pitches in Riffa, with the session featuring ball drills and tactical work.
A number of Bahrain’s call-ups who were previously still on duty with their clubs overseas or in the kingdom reported to the squad yesterday, including Mahdi Abduljabbar, Mohammed Abdulqayoom, Ali Al Doseri, and Abdulla Efrih Alahmed.
The nationals are preparing for two major tournaments – the 27th Gulf Cup in September and October of this year, which they are entering as defending champions, and the AFC Asian Cup 2027, slated for January and February next year.
The Bahrainis are scheduled to fly to Europe on Tuesday where they will play a pair of international friendly matches against formidable opponents.
They will first take on Georgia – ranked 72nd in the world – on June 5 at Mikheil Maski Stadium in Tbilisi. They then face off with Syria – ranked 84th in international football – on June 9 at Gloria Sports Arena in Antalya, Türkiye.
In this year’s Gulf Cup, also known as ‘Khaleeji 27’, Bahrain are in Group B of the preliminary round along with Qatar, the UAE, and Yemen, while Group A is composed of Iraq, Oman, Kuwait, and hosts Saudi.
In the AFC Asian Cup 2027, the nationals are in Group B for the tournament’s preliminaries with Uzbekistan, North Korea, and Jordan.
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