The Lebanese national football team delegation departed today to the city of Odisha in India to participate in the friendly Continental Cup, which includes three other teams alongside Lebanon: India, Mongolia, and Vanuatu, from June 9 to 18.
The matches will take place at the "Kalinga" stadium, where Lebanon will face Vanuatu and Mongolia on June 9 and 12 at 2:00 PM Beirut time, and will play against India on June 15 at 5:00 PM.
According to the tournament's format, the group leader and the second-place team will qualify for the final match on June 18 at 5:00 PM.
After the tournament, the team will head directly to the city of Bangalore to participate in the South Asian Football Federation Championship from June 21 to July 4. Eight teams are participating in this championship, distributed into two groups of four teams each. The matches will follow a single round-robin format, with the first and second places from each group qualifying for the semi-finals on July 1, while the final match will be held on July 4.
Lebanon has been drawn into Group B alongside the Maldives, Bhutan, and Bangladesh, while Kuwait, India, Nepal, and Pakistan are in Group A.
Lebanon's matches will include a game against Bangladesh on June 22 at 1:00 PM Beirut time, followed by a match against Bhutan on June 25 at 5:00 PM, and another against the Maldives on June 28 at 1:00 PM.
The team delegation consists of: Fouad Belhawan (Team Manager), Alexander Alitich (Head Coach), Deyjan Trikovic (Assistant Coach), Ivan Alitch (Assistant Coach), Pegik Zavesa (Goalkeeper Coach), Prokivich Vladimir (Fitness Coach), Abdul Qadir Abu Kanana (Analyst), Bilal Danna (Doctor), Eli Metni (Physiotherapist), Hussein Maki (Physiotherapist), and Shafik Faris (Equipment Manager).
The players are: Mehdi Khalil, Abdul Razak Dekrmanji, Maxim Aoun, Mohammed Hayek, Mehdi Zein, Hussein Zein, Hassan Maatouq, Hassan Saad, Karim Darwish, Ali Alhaj, Ali Marqabawee, Hassan Sarour, George Melki, Nader Matar, Mohammed Ali Dehaini, Walid Shour, Khalil Bader, Jihad Ayoob, Zein Fran, Hassan Kourani, Ali Al-Sab, Ali Tanesh, and Antoine Douiyhi.
These two tournaments in India are part of the intense preparations announced by the head coach of the national first team, Alexander Alitich, in a recent press conference, in readiness for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, alongside an internal camp that lasted a week in Beirut before traveling to Antalya for an external camp that lasted 12 days.
Before traveling, the team underwent complete medical examinations under the supervision of Dr. Bilal Danna, which included laboratory tests and a VO2 max test, which measures the maximum amount of oxygen that a player can use during intense exercise.
This is the first time that thorough heart and lung examinations have been conducted for the players. In some cases, certain players have undergone echocardiograms as directed by the specialist doctor, as well as tests to measure fat and cholesterol levels and muscle mass through accredited nutrition specialists.
