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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's football coach Tariq Lutfi hopes that the players have learned a lot from the two matches Pakistan team played against Palestine.
“It's normal for the public to expect a lot from this game but it is not fair to judge these young players because they need time to develop. If you expect a lot, it will put a lot of pressure on them,” Tariq told APP.
“You can't have results without giving time for preparation and development.”
Pakistan will take on Malaysia in Olympic Qualifier second leg at Lahore's Punjab Stadium on March 9.
Pakistan Under-21 is still in learning stage and the way they played against Palestine was praise worthy.
Lutfi believes his boys have the experience and pedigree to develop into fine players in years to come if they play to their potential.
While talking about Malaysians, he said that Malaysian coach Ong Kim Swee has six players from the AFF Suzuki Cup-winning side and also trainees who had short stints with the national senior squad over the past year.
Meanwhile, Under-21 coach Ong Kim Swee said that “Playing against Pakistan is quite special, it brings back memories of the Merdeka Cup days where Pakistan faced Malaysia twice and because our senior team has done well recently, there is definitely pressure on us to do well,” he said.
