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Bahrain coach Josef Hickersberger is putting his players under the spotlight against China today urging them to play their way into contention to secure a regular place in his starting line-up for the regional quest for glory which lies ahead.
The team takes on the Chinese in Nanjing and the boss has every faith that his 22-player squad can deliver a result and provide a kick-start for the new national management regime.
Speaking to GulfWeekly from China, Hickersberger said: "They have a good attitude on and off the field - that is obviously clear. But as we have not played a single competitive match so far so I cannot tell you how good the team is. Maybe I will have a better view after the match against China.
"I cannot say now where the team stands as far as the Asian Cup rankings are concerned or how we will do in the competitions coming up but I have high hopes for us.
"The first and primary goal is to build a good team spirit and that is possible with proper training and the determination and dedication of the players to be successful."
Hickersberger had taken a 22-player squad to Nanjing made up mostly of players from the kingdom's local clubs, as only three of the top players plying their trade overseas were available for inclusion because of prior club commitments.
On the plus side, it gives the coach a golden opportunity to introduce fresh blood into the squad. He said: "While I did manage to take three overseas players with me to China, Mohammed Adnan, Hussain Baba and Abdualla Fatai, I could not take others like Jaycee John.
"Jaycee's league starts this week and I figured it would be best for him to play with his club teammates from the beginning instead of flying out for a friendly.
"Also, there are some new players in the squad. I am excited to have Salman Eissa, Mohamed Hussain, Abdullah Omar and Fauozi Aish with us in China.
"A new member which I recently recruited is Rashid Khalil Al Hooti. He is one of the youngsters I have called up from the Under-23 Olympic team. I watched him in Qatar two weeks ago and I think he has great potential."
The West Asian Football Federation Championship is the first major tournament to start Bahrain's action-packed programme and it is kicking-off in Jordan on September 24.
The nation will be pitted against eight of the region's top teams including Iran, Palestine, Oman, Syria, Kuwait, Iraq, Yemen and Jordan itself.
Prior to the competition Bahrain has one more friendly fixture against Qatar in Doha on September 3.
The 20th Gulf Cup held in Yemen will be staged in November. This will then lead up to the AFC Asian Cup Finals in Doha in January 2011, in which Bahrain will battle it out with Australia, South Korea and India in Group C to get into the knock-out stage.
Hickersberger, 62, is a former Rapid Wien and Austria coach, who has had successful spells in management at a number of Asian clubs in recent years including Al Ittihad of Qatar and Al Wasl of the United Arab Emirates. He recently replaced Milan Macala as coach.
The new man coached the Bahrain national team back in 1996 when the side failed to qualify for the World Cup Finals in 1998. Now, Hickerbserger is now relishing the opportunity to resolve some 'unfinished business' and also dispel the misery of the recent World Cup campaign which saw Bahrain miss the finals in South Africa by losing a play-off against New Zealand.
