TAIF, Monday, June 24, 2024 (WAFA) – The coach of the Palestinian youth national soccer team, Sajed Karakra, said today that preparations for the Al-Dyar Al-Arabiyai West Asia Youth Championship - Saudi Arabia 2024 were considerably interrupted due to the circumstances that Palestine is experiencing as a result of the Israeli aggression.

The team only met two days before the start of the tournament, the coach told reporters in Saudi Arabia's Taif City.

The Palestinian youth team will play in the West Asian Championship in the third group alongside the teams of Syria, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. The national team will begin its journey by playing a friendly match against the Syrian team this Wednesday.  

“We are trying to appear honorably in this tournament and use it as a preparation stage for the upcoming qualifiers in September," Karakra added.

He explained that despite attempts to hold external camps and friendly matches, the circumstances in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip did not allow the team to be well prepared for this tournament, especially in light of the cessation of sports activity in Palestine since October of last year.

The team manager pointed out that the national team lacks several players from the Gaza Strip, revealing that four players were not allowed to leave, in addition to the killing of a player from the youth national team by the Israeli occupation forces.

Karakra affirmed that player gatherings in the West Bank were limited and difficult due to the difficulty of movement, stressing that the team is striving to prepare for the Asian qualifiers in September.

"Our group in the qualifiers includes strong teams such as Saudi Arabia and Australia, and we are working to improve the performance of our existing elements...we hope to hold friendly matches after this tournament in preparation for the Asian qualifiers," he said.

A.D./T.R.