Guam coach is optimistic

By Jill Espiritu

Courtesy:
Pacific Daily News

Guam will be sending its first men's national futsal team ever to compete off-island in an Asian Football Confederation Futsal Championship qualifying round next month in Macau.

"I think Guam has a chance to do well against some of the Asian countries," head coach Sugao Kambe said. "We are at the same level technically and physically, but the difference might be in tactics. The good thing about players from Guam is that many like to play basketball, and many of the tactics we're using are similar, like man-to-man defense or zone defense and full-court press.

Team scheduled to leave April 14

"Futsal is not yet that popular in Asia. The top four teams in Asia have futsal experts, but the other countries will be sending the same players who play outdoor soccer," he added.

The team is scheduled to leave April 14 and return on April 22, team manager Tino San Gil said. The final cut for the men's national futsal team will be made sometime next week, according to Kambe. In addition to the team, Kambe hopes to send a referee to Macau to observe the tournament, he said.

Of the 20 men coming to practice, Kambe will select 14 for the national team. More than half of the players attending practice are part of the under-16 and under-19 national soccer teams. Only three or four players played for the men's national soccer team, Kambe said. For now, interested players attend practice once a week on Saturdays. In the weeks before the tournament, Kambe hopes to increase practice days to three or four times a week.

"Based on the guys going to practice, the team has a lot of talent," 15-year-old Zachary Pangelinan said. "More than half of the players are either 15, 16, 17 or 18, so the team will have a lot of fresh legs. In order to prepare for the level of competition we'll face, we'll need to practice a lot harder.

"Right now, we're just learning the basics, and that includes rules. Futsal rules are different from (outdoor) soccer rules," he added.

This will be Kambe's first time coaching a futsal team, but the long-time Japan professional league player brings futsal tournament experience to the team. Kambe competed in the First Futsal World Championships in 1989 in the Netherlands with the Japanese national team.

Guam is slated to play in Group D with China, Malaysia and Thailand, according to a preliminary match schedule. Only the top three out of 18 teams in the Asian qualifying round will compete in the Federation Internationale de Football Association Futsal World Championship scheduled to be held in Chinese Taipei later this year.