Paro FC will leave for Sri Lanka next week to play the first leg of the Preliminary Round One of the South Asian Zone qualifier for the 2020 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup. They will play the champions of Sri Lanka, Defenders FC on 22nd of January.
The champions of the Bhutan Premier League, Paro FC has been training for more than a month at Paro and Thimphu in preparation of the first leg encounter.
“The people and the fans have huge hope on us and I think as far as the preparation has been going, I am very optimistic about the boys. We are anticipating a win and expecting to qualify and play against Bengaluru FC in the next level,” said Puspalal Sharma, the Head Coach for Paro FC.
Despite losing their last season’s top scorer Ellon Maxwell, the club has managed to sign in Chencho Gyeltshen on a mutual understanding that he will be free to join other clubs after the preliminaries.
“We have strengthened our squad. We have the Asian quota and we have filled the quota with an Indian player. And we have three players from Cameroon, two players playing in the midfield position and one playing as a striker. And the squad has been further strengthened because Chencho has joined us for the AFC Cup clash,” the Head Coach added.
However, the three Cameroon players are yet to join the squad due to visa issues. This will be Paro FC’s first international match since its formation in 2018.
The team will leave a week ahead of the clash to get acclimatize with the altitude and weather in Sri Lanka.
“We are really working hard for the AFC cup and really excited to play against Defenders FC as well. Starting from our club president, board members, coaches and players, every one of them is giving their hundred per cent. We are really hoping for a win,” said Phub Dorji, a player with Paro FC.
“We are doing our best to prepare well for the upcoming match against Defenders FC in Sri Lanka. We are not taking any day off and have been seriously focused on the game. We are optimistic of a good result there in Defenders FC’s home ground,” added Gyeltshen Zangpo, also a player.
The second leg of the tie will be played in Bhutan on 29th of January. The winner of the two-legged tie will then face the champions of the Hero Indian Super League, Bengaluru FC in the Preliminary Round Two in February.
Passang Dorji
