In order to tackle their next challenge, the Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, Pakistan football team has once again started a training camp in Lahore under their Brazilian head coach Jose Antonio Nogueira and trainer Jose Portella.

The team successfully toured Bahrain, in which the Pakistani side played four matches with different local clubs. The touring party won matches against Riffa FC (1-0) and Sitra FC (2-0), while the match against Al Ahli ended with a 0-0 draw. Their only defeat came at the hands of Budaya, where they fell 2-1.

The Asian Games will be Pakistan’s first major international tournament after three years as Pakistan recovers from the halt which gravely hindered the sport’s rise in the country. Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) recently confirmed that the team for the Asian Games will be announced on August 10, with the side leaving for Indonesia the very next day.

“The team performed exceptionally in Bahrain considering that they were playing after a gap of three years,” said PFF Secretary Ahmed Yar Lodhi. The team will kick off the games against Vietnam on August 14. Their second match is scheduled against World Cup playing Japan, while the team will play their last game against Nepal on August 19.

“The Asian Games are a big event and we are confident that we can beat the Nepal team, but Vietnam and Japan are going to be difficult,” said Lodhi. He also revealed that the PFF is getting funds from the Asian Football Confederation and other sources amounting to over Rs50 million.

The Pakistan Sports Board is not funding the team, and the PFF has to spend around half of that money on the preparations for the Asian Games and the upcoming SAF Cup which is taking place in Bangladesh in the first week of September.