WE ARE 80% READY: SOULIVANH

Laos, which played hosts to the biennial SEA Games last year, will be hosting the qualifying round of ASEAN’s biggest meet in October with only four teams taking part.

The four teams are Timor Leste, Cambodia, Philippines and Laos.

Up to this point, Brunei will not be a part of this year’s qualifying round following their suspension from FIFA.

“I would rate the level of our preparation at 80% simply because we do not have to worry about the infrastructure as the Main Stadium at the National Sports Complex is new, very new,” said Soulivanh Xuenvilay, the secretary general of the Laos Football Federation (LFF).

“The only thing is that we just need to go through the appointment of the several agencies in terms of security, transportations and also lodging which should not pose to be much of an issue.”

The Dong Chan Palace is the official hotel for the teams and members of the secretariat while the Lao Plaza Hotel is for match officials.

The official media residence is the Ang Kham Hotel, just a stone’s throw away from the Main Stadium.

There are four training fields being provided with the nearest to the Dong Chan Palace being the Anuvong Stadium, located some five minutes away while the furthest is the Loas National Training Centre located some 20 minutes out.

“As far as training the Laos team is concerned, we have appointed David Booth as the chief coach to replace Alfred (Riedl) who has since joined the Indonesia national team,” added Soulivanh.