The national football team’s head coach, Mohamed Shiyaz (Mohan), has stated that the biggest satisfaction regarding the national team currently is that the players’ fitness has significantly improved compared to the Sri Lanka match. Mohan said that as they prepare for the upcoming match, the greatest satisfaction with the national team is that the players are now fitter than they were during the SAFF Championship held in Sri Lanka earlier this month. Mohan has expressed full confidence that the national team’s performance level has further improved.
“The satisfaction comes from the certainty that the players’ fitness will be much better than in Lanka. This will be a significant improvement as they have played league matches since the season started. We faced that challenge greatly in Lanka. However, we hope that this time it will be considerably reduced. That’s a big satisfaction,” Mohan said. As Maldivian football rebounds after counting difficult days of decline, the coach said that the restart of the football league after nearly two years would be a major advancement for the players. Mohan, who led the national team to lift its first trophy after a long time, said that players continuing to play in the league has many positives.
In this regard, he noted that players are showing more alertness and sharpness than before. However, Mohan stated that we must accept that the team’s performance won’t improve suddenly and that it’s a positive change that will come with time. “Now that players have played more matches, we’re seeing better alertness. We’re seeing better sharpness. These are all positive things. We need to understand that we won’t see a huge difference just three days after the league starts. However, as we progress, I believe we will see a significant improvement in the players. This will also be reflected in the national team,” said the coach who gave the national team a chance to lift a trophy after a long time.
The Maldives national team is currently preparing for their match against Tajikistan on the 9th of this month in Tajikistan for the Asian Cup Qualifiers. Following that, the national team will face Tajikistan at home on the 14th of this month. After taking to the official football field to play against the Philippines on November 18th, the national team will once again step onto their home turf on March 31st next year, aiming to defeat East Timor.
