‘No place for princes in my team’

Journeyman coach Paul Put vowed to build a team of young players with strong work ethic after arriving in Dhaka yesterday to take charge of Saif SC.

The 64-year-old Belgian landed in the capital to prepare the mid-table side ahead of the upcoming football season, which is scheduled to get underway with the Federation Cup from December 19.

"I like also to play with young players. My philosophy is that in my team, there is no place for princes. We need players who work and players who are motivated. We need players who would be proud to wear the shirt of Saif Sporting and have the mental strength to get the best results," Put said during an interview with local media yesterday.

Put brings two decades of managerial experience with him including managing a number African national teams and Jordan, with whom he came to Dhaka in 2015. However, a bigger challenge than those could be Saif SC – a club which finished fifth in the league last season and one that is not known for its patience with coaches.

"If you work with young players, you'll have to work with a long-term vision. You cannot work with a short-term vision. I will try to do my level best," the veteran coach said. The coach will not get the services in the Federation Cup and the first leg of the league of the club's inspirational skipper Jamal Bhuiyan, who has been loaned to Kolkata Mohammedan.