by Natasha Raheel
KARACHI: SSGC star striker Saadullah hailed the appointment of head coach Tariq Lutfi and said that the club’s players now have a good mentor to guide them.
Lutfi, who was let go by KRL in 2015, was responsible for the development and grooming of stars such as Kaleemullah, Muhammad Adil, Saddam Hussain and Saadullah, all of whom went to represent foreign clubs.
And Saadullah, who has previously worked under Lutfi at KRL when the club won three domestic crowns in a row and also managed to reach the Asian Football Confederation President’s Cup final in 2013, believes SSGC will take giant leaps forward because of Lutfi’s arrival.
“SSGC are a Division B club but we will be improving a lot now that Lutfi is with us,” Saadullah told The Express Tribune during a team training session in Karachi for the NBP President’s Gold Cup, which will begin on January 17. “I had also switched from a bigger to a smaller club because I know smaller clubs have a lot of potential. With Lutfi’s arrival, we will get the same level of coaching as we would have if we were in a big club.”
Saadullah also hinted that SSGC will be bringing in new talent as per the coach’s wishes. “The idea is to improve the team for the NBP President’s Gold Cup where all the top clubs are competing. In the long run we want to get SSGC into the Pakistan Premier Football League; for that a lot of new players might be joining the club.”