As Caf deadline is due today
As the official deadline for participants to submit their final squad list for the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast later this month, Gambians are eagerly waiting for Coach Tom Saintfiet to unveil who will be on the plane to the event.
Currently, he is in Saudi Arabia with over 40 players and a GFF statement suggested that he would only name his final list on 9 January when the team arrives back in the country for the final pre- departure ceremonies. However, that date seems to be too late for the Caf deadline of today 3 January and with other nations announcing their final list, pressure is mounting on the Gambian technicians to clarify. Some Gambians speculated that the coach may have sent the list to Caf and chose to keep the public in the dark until on 9 January. The Standard sought clarification from the officials at the team’s training camp in Saudi Arabia without success. There has also not been any official statement on many players in the provisional list turning up for the camping with the public and media depending on head counting the arrival photos of the players.
A statement from the GFF yesterday reported that the Scorpions have arrived for a seven-day training camp in the eastern province city of Saudi Arabia and their first training session expected last evening. ”The team will remain here until 8 January it will leave for Banjul and arriving on the following day. They will collect the battle flag and train at the Independence Stadium the same day whereas Coach Tom Saintfiet will also hold a press conference to announce his final squad that will represent the country at the African Cup of Nations,” the GFF statement on their Facebook page said. It did not mention a proposed friendly match against Morocco slated for 7 January.
