FOOTBALL – BAHRAIN’S senior men’s football national team departed last night for Guangzhou, China ahead of their participation in the 2026 CFA China Team Zhaoqing International Football Invitational Tournament.
The event is a friendly competition featuring four senior men’s national teams and it will be played in Zhaoqing from Saturday to Tuesday next week.
The Bahrainis held their final training session in the kingdom last night at the Bahrain Football Association pitches in Riffa prior to their travel. The session was supervised by newly signed national team head coach Felix Sanchez from Spain, who focused on tactics and building chemistry amongst the players, in addition to working on their physical fitness.
National team administrator Abdulla Al Mutawa has already arrived in China with chef Mohammed Marhoon to finalise all arrangements for the arrival of the kingdom’s squad. The nationals will be residing at Wyndham Grand Zhaoqing Downtown Hotel during their stay, while their practice sessions will be held at the outdoor fields of Zhaoqing New Area Sports Centre.
Sanchez named 30 players for the Bahrain squad for their trip to the Far East. The roster includes Mohammed Jassim Marhoon, Abdulla Yusuf, Komail Alaswad, Ali Madan, Sayed Dhiya Saeed, Amine Benaddi, Waleed Al Hayyam, Abdulla Alkhalasi, Moses Atede, Omar Saber, Vincent Emmanuel, Abbas Alasfoor, Hussain Abdulkarim, Ali Aldoseri, Ahmed Rabea, Ahmed Bughammar, Jassim Khelaif, Ahmed Alsherooqi, Mohammed Adel, Hashem Sayed Issa, Sayed Mahdi Baqer, Hazza Ali, Mohammed Abdulqayoom, Jassim Ben Jamea, Bader Alasam, and goalkeepers Ebrahim Luthfallah, Godwill Chia Ndang, Omar Salem, and Mohammed Elgharably.
Veteran striker Mohammed Al Rumaihi has been replaced in the line-up by youngster Saud Mohsen after Al Rumaihi suffered an injury during training.
Marhoon and Yusuf did not travel with the team from Bahrain. They instead flew directly from their base in Kuwait, where they play as professionals with Kuwaiti clubs.
The 2026 CFA China Team Zhaoqing International Football Invitational Tournament features the senior men’s squads of Yemen, Malaysia, Bahrain, and hosts China.
The Bahrainis will play just two matches, first against Yemen on November 14 and then against China on November 17. They will not be facing off with their Malaysian counterparts.
Bahrain were planning to compete in the event as part of their final preparations for the AFC Asian Cup 2027, but the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has decided to reschedule the prestigious tournament to December of 2027 and January of 2028 from its original dates in January and February of next year.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh