Football Association of Maldives general secretary Ahmed Zareer has confirmed that coach Faruk Zakirov will rejoin the national futsal team in China for the forthcoming international tournament.
Zakirov, who led the Maldives to a clean sweep of victories and the gold medal at the SAFF Futsal Championship earlier this year, remains in charge of technical preparations even while the coaching staff assembles in China.
The tournament, scheduled for early November, will feature the Maldives alongside China, South Korea and Hong Kong. The side’s first match is set for 5 November against South Korea, followed by Hong Kong on 7 November and hosts China on 9 November.
Zakirov is the first foreign coach appointed to the national futsal team. Before taking the Maldives role he coached Uzbekistan’s women’s national futsal side and the club Nafchi, and represented Uzbekistan as a player between 2001 and 2008.
FAM said the event offers an important opportunity to test the team against regional opposition after the successful SAFF campaign.
