Old news
Nice to see that Goal.com have picked up the story I broke two weeks ago here that the Cambodian national football team coach Prak Sovannara has rung the changes after the team's three-match losing sequence at the Suzuki Cup finals in December by introducing 9 new faces into his squad, as they prepare for the AFC Challenge Cup group matches in Bangladesh at the end of next month. Here's the article, obviously re-worded from my own, that appeared in the South East Asia section of their website. It's good that someone at least took the trouble to give Cambodia a plug at all. Talking of the national team, their left-sided midfielder-cum-winger Chan Rithy played for the Phnom Penh Crown team as they collected the Hun Sen Cup on Saturday amid speculation that he could be off to play in the Thai Premier League next season. It's something I mooted a while ago that maybe 3 or 4 of the national team's best players need to take flight and go and play in some of the higher standard football around Asia to improve their skill, technique and big-game experience in order to bring that to bear in the international arena. I'm talking about keeper Samreth Seiha, Chan Rithy, Sun Sovannarith and the striking duo of Khim Borey and Kouch Sokumpheak. Anyway, here's that Goal.com article.Cambodia Call Up Nine New Faces For AFC Challenge Cup
Cambodia have rung the changes ahead of some crucial matches... 30 March 2009
Prak Sovannara, the head coach of the Cambodia national team, has called on nine new faces to carry the team’s challenge for the upcoming AFC Challenge Cup qualifying round in Bangladesh with games against the hosts and Myanmar. Out of the 22 players called for the centralised training camp at the National Olympic Stadium, the decision was made to rely on the majority of the players from the recent Hun Sen Cup finalists - Phnom Penh Crown and Naga Corp FC. The Cambodian Premier League and Hun Sen Cup holders, Phnom Phen, already had Teing Tiny and Chan Rithy in the national squad and now they also have goalkeeper Peng Bunchhay, defender Lor Pech Seiha and offensive midfielder Keo Sokgnan in the line-up.
On the other hand, Naga Corp contributed striker Teab Vatanak, midfielder Pok Chanthan and defensive captain Om Thavarak alongside existing Kim Chanbunrith and Sun Sovannarith. Preah Khan Reach FC, who emerged as the third best team in the Hun Sen Cup last week, now have six players in the national squad with the addition of midfielder Khoun La Boravy. The other new faces in the Cambodia national team are right-back Pheak Rady from National Defense Ministry FC and Ly Ravy, a midfielder from Kirivong Sok Sen Chey. Those players who have been left out since their participation in the AFF Suzuki Cup 2008 are custodian Hem Samay, defenders Thul Sothearith, Chea Virath and Sun Sampratna, midfielders Sam Minar, Ieng Saknida, Ieng Piseth and strikers Pich Sina and Hok Sochivorn.
Labels: Cambodia football
posted by Andy Brouwer at
4:45 PM
3 Comments:
Andy.Great to see you back and continue to post useful articles about Cambodian National Football Team.Oh! I have some questions related to your article.
1.Is it true that Chan Rithy will Play in the Thai Premier League?
2.Can you explain more about the question above?
Thanks.
Your blog is the most important for me to know about the hot news of the Cambodian National Football Team.As I always say.
Thanks Anon. So far its only a rumour that was mentioned after the Cup Final on Saturday. Chan Rithy is still pretty young in footballing terms and quality left-footed players are a rarity. At times Rithy can be very good, tricky, hard to tackle and loves to shoot, whilst at other times he can be very ordinary and can't cross the ball for all the tea in China. In my view he's inconsistent but a spell in higher-graded club competition may be just the type of development stimulus he needs. Playing for the league champions and cup winners here in Cambodia is too easy for him, he needs to be tested and pushed to prove that his left-foot can become a lethal weapon for his country.
I don't know which Thai team or whether it will actually happen, but I really do think that the experience of playing in better football in a foreign country would be of great benefit to a handful of carefully selected Khmer players.
As for news about the national team, I hope to have a formal interview with Prak Sovannara next week (fingers crossed) and will continue to bring you the news as it happens for Cambodia's national football team.
Andy
The Cambodia Daily finally caught up with the Cambodia national team changes on Wednesday 1 April. Better late than never. In fact I don't think the Phnom Penh Post have mentioned it yet either.
The Daily noted the names of the 9 new faces in the 22-man squad though they didn't mentioned all the clubs they played for. A comment from the coach Prak Sovannara was that the new additions were the "next generation" of national team players and "the play level of the next generation is a lot better."
Of the players leaving the squad, Sam Mina, Chea Virath and Ieng Saknida have all begun to train as coaches, with Saknida already coaching the national u/13 team.
The squad's next games are in Bangladesh at the end of this month.
Andy
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