The international window, which ran from March 23-31, saw Pakistan’s football team play one match; that was on the very first day and was the second leg of their first-round qualifier for the 2018 FIFA World Cup against Yemen.
Having lost 3-1 in the away leg played in Doha – due to the political insurgency in Yemen – on March 12, Pakistan were due to host the second leg at the Punjab Stadium in Lahore five days later.
But the day Yemen arrived; twin suicide attacks on churches in the city’s Youhanabad neighbourhood left the chances of the game being held in the Punjab capital hanging by a thread.
Yemen did train at the Punjab Stadium on the eve of the game, but FIFA intervened and it was later decided that the second leg would also be played on neutral territory – at the Khalifa Sports City Stadium in Bahrain’s Isa Town on March 23.
Needing a 2-0 result to progress to the second round of qualifiers, where the big guns of Asian football like Japan, Australia and Iran were to join in, the Shaheens could only manage a goalless draw.
Pakistan’s journey to Russia thus ended in the first round. They are left with another four years to ponder where they faltered, but for Pakistan skipper Hassan Bashir, who plays for Danish second-division side Svebolle, enough is enough.
“Biggest disappointment in my footballing life,” Hassan wrote on his Facebook page. “We’re already out of the race for 2018.
“This was a big opportunity for Pakistan to play against the giants in Asia such as Japan, South Korea and Iran but we failed. It would have been priceless exposure for us players.
“We could have prevented all of this if our heads [Pakistan Football Federation (PFF)] could have planned better. If we didn’t choose to play only youth games or unofficial games in 2014, we would have never been in this situation.”
The lack of international matches caused Pakistan to fall in the FIFA rankings, and being ranked amongst the bottom 12 teams of Asia, was forced to enter the qualifiers in the first round.
It would’ve been a busy international window this, had the bombings in Youhanabad not taken place.
The U-23 team would’ve been involved in the 2016 AFC U-23 Championship qualifiers, facing the likes of Kuwait, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan in Group ‘B’ in Lahore, but security concerns forced the AFC to change the venue and the dates.
But with four years to go before qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup begins, the PFF can now focus on using the international window more effectively by arranging friendly matches for the team, so it avoids the situation it faced this year.
Bahraini head coach Mohammed Al Shamlan has already made it clear he will not stay with the team once his contract expires in June.
The PFF has big decisions to make. Having had coaches from Europe in the past, maybe it is time the PFF experiments with a South American coach. How about a Brazilian coach for that matter?
Dunga's Selecao getting desired results
Dunga was at the Estadio Mineirao, working as an expert for Brazilian television, when Brazil were being thrashed 7-1 by Germany in the World Cup semi-final in July.
Reporters circled around him at the media centre for a ‘golden’ quote after the game, but Dunga wouldn’t budge, a quality he demands of Brazil.
Made Brazil's coach for a second time, his task was to pick up a side that had been relegated to its lowest ebb. His Selecao may not play the ‘Joga Bonito’ but he’s had eight straight victories since replacing Luiz Felipe Scolari in the hot seat.
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The Brazilians, on their tour of Europe during the international window, beat France 3-1 at the Stade de France in Paris on Thursday before a 1-0 win against Chile at the Emirates Stadium in London on Sunday.
The Paris win would certainly have given Dunga some pleasure. It was at the very same stadium where as Brazil captain, he’d seen his side outclassed 3-0 by France in the 1998 World Cup final.
Brilliant performance by Neymar and Willian were key to Brazil’s win, the Barcelona star being amongst the scorers alongside Oscar and Luiz Gustavo.
Brazil were using the international window as preparation for the Copa America from June 11 to July 4, and they showed their new found resoluteness when Robert Firmino’s superb individual effort helped them to victory against the tournament hosts in London.
And Dunga’s work has not gone unnoticed.
“It’s a very concrete concept,” Brazil’s 1994 football World Cup-winning coach said. “When Brazil learn to play without the ball, the team is almost unbeatable.
“That’s the challenge of every Brazil coach. Dunga is implementing the concept with a lot of success. It’s the affirmation of something that has always been successful for World Cup-winning teams. Brazil didn’t play marvelously against Chile but the team defended and won the match with one attacking move.”
The Copa America would be Dunga’s first real test and it would identify exactly how far he’s taken the team since that night of capitulation in Belo Horizonte.
Falcao finding his scoring boots again
Brazil beat Colombia 2-1 in an acrimonious World Cup quarter-final, which saw Neymar being ruled out of the World Cup with a back injury.
Colombia had found a new talisman at the Brazil tournament with James Rodriguez stepping up, but maybe if Radamel Falcao had been on the pitch that night against Brazil, the result would have been very different.
Ruled out of the World Cup with a knee injury, the hitman left AS Monaco for Manchester United on loan during the summer but his time at Old Trafford has been largely spent warming the bench.
While Brazil were warming up for the Copa America in Europe, Colombia were touring the Middle East during the international break and the good news for them was that Falcao found his scoring boots.
Having scored twice in Colombia’s 6-0 romp over Bahrain on Thursday, another goal in a 3-1 victory over Kuwait on Monday saw him equal the country’s scoring record with 24 goals in 56 internationals.
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With his confidence back, he’s eyeing a strong finish to the season with United as they look to secure a Champions League berth.
“I think when I score, it’s always important and that gives me confidence,” he told Sport360. “I said before I need minutes, I need to play games in a row and here in the national team, I have had the opportunity. I gave my best and I scored and I now return to Manchester with more confidence.”
Not only were Colombia visiting the Middle East but a slew of other Asian teams were in action preparing for the second round of Asian World Cup qualifiers in June.
Qatar, the 2022 World Cup hosts, upset Algeria with a stunning solo goal from Ali Assadala undoing Africa’s top-ranked side on Thursday while Iraq beat the Democratic Republic of Congo twice, beating them 2-1 on Saturday before running out 1-0 victors on Tuesday.
Algeria, preparing for the qualifiers of the 2017 African Cup of Nations which begin in June, bounced back from the Qatar defeat with a 4-1 thrashing of Oman on Monday.
Friendly win for Dutch but Euro woes continue
While South Americans were preparing for Copa America, the Asians were warming up for the second round of World Cup qualifiers and the Africans were preparing for the qualifiers of the 2017 African Cup of Nations – all in June. The Europeans played a friendly and a Euro 2016 qualifier during the international break.
While the top sides like world champions Germany, European champions Spain, Italy, Portugal and England are relatively well-placed in their respective groups, 2014 World Cup semi-finalists the Netherlands have been struggling in their quest to reach the finals in France.
Netherlands, under Guus Hiddink who replaced Louis van Gaal after the World Cup, needed a late leveler from Klaas-Jan Huntelaar to secure a 1-1 draw with Turkey on Saturday which left them third in Group ‘B’ behind Czech Republic and Iceland halfway through the qualifying campaign.
The top two teams from each of the nine groups will advance to the 24-team tournament, alongside the best-placed third-placed team. The remaining third-placed teams from the eight groups will face a playoff to decide the remaining four places.
The Dutch, however, gave Hiddink some much-needed boost when they beat Spain 2-0 in a friendly on Tuesday after first-half goals from Stefan de Vrij and Davy Klaasen, reaffirming their dominance over La Furia Roja having thrashed them 5-1 at the World Cup.
Midfielder Wesley Sneijder, a part of the Dutch side that lost the final of the 2010 World Cup to Spain, hoped the result would spark Dutch resurgence.
“We started off convincingly,” Sneijder told reporters according to the KNVB website. “We knew there was a lot of prestige at stake and we were keen to make amends for our poor result against Turkey.”
“This victory is a fantastic achievement and it will definitely give us a boost ahead of the next qualifier. We did just about everything right.”
For Sneijder, qualification for the Euro 2016 would offer him maybe a final chance to end Netherlands’ title drought which stretches back to 1988 when they were crowned European champions.
The best of the rest
How could an international window be complete without the ultimate showmen of the game?
Take Zlatan Ibrahimovic for example. He tried the exquisite many times, showcasing all his moves and displaying the reach of his long legs but he netted only with his head to lead Sweden to a 3-1 victory over Iran in Stockholm on Tuesday.
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The magical Lionel Messi, nursing an injury, sat out both of Argentina’s matches on their tour of the United States – a 2-0 win over El Salvador followed by a 2-1 win over Ecuador.
An emerging Harry Kane, meanwhile, had a dream debut for England when the Tottenham Hotspur striker netted just 79 seconds after coming on in a 4-0 win over Lithuania in a Euro 2016 qualifier on Friday.
His club-mate Andros Townsend, though, stole the limelight from him after he scored a long-range scorcher to secure England a 1-1 draw against Italy in an international friendly on Tuesday.
There was also a draw for Germany against Asian champions Australia with Lukas Podolski's late intervention, securing a 2-2 draw for the world champions last Wednesday.
Young Japanese striker Gaku Shibasaki, meanwhile, scored a standout goal in Japan’s 5-1 demolition of Uzbekistan on Tuesday, with an outrageous lob from just inside the Uzbek box.
Had Pakistan planned better, as according to Hassan, they might have been drawn against the Japanese in the second round of World Cup qualifying.
Maybe Shibasaki would’ve scored an even better goal against the Shaheens but nonetheless, that would’ve been some experience for the boys in green.