Suzuki Cup: Timorese miss home but treasure 100-day sojourn in Singapore

SINGAPORE - He has been away from his country for more than 50 days and has not been home for almost 100 days, but Timor-Leste forward Mouzinho was full of purpose and joy while talking to The Straits Times through a translator on Saturday (Dec 11).

The 19-year-old said: "I do miss my family, but we have a mission here in Singapore."

The Timor-Leste Under-23 team had been based in Timor-Leste since Sept 6, before flying to Singapore on Oct 21, where most of them and their backroom staff have been based since.

Their first undertaking was the Under-23 Asian Cup qualifiers, where they acquitted themselves well by holding the Young Lions to a 2-2 draw and beating the Philippines 1-0 to finish third behind South Korea and Singapore.

After that campaign, only six players returned home, while 17 stayed on with eight officials to prepare for the ongoing AFF Suzuki Cup. They were then joined by another six senior players.

Timor-Leste coach Fabio Maciel explained: "There are limited flights per month between the two countries, so it was difficult to return and come back here."

So way before the other eight visiting teams arrived, they were already functioning in the tournament's bubble, shuttling only between Hotel Royal and training grounds at Jalan Besar and Gombak.

Maciel, a 44-year-old Brazilian, said: "The hotel is good, and the food is good. We are thankful for our federation for financing our stay here and the Football Association of Singapore for their support."

Mouzinho, who is the youngest of six siblings born in Maliana, had no problems too, despite breaking his previous record of being away from home for a month.

The forward added: "The last time was also because of football, and we have had a few overseas trips, so this is not an unfamiliar situation.

"I do miss playing with my two elder brothers and having cassava (a tapioca-like root vegetable), but other than that, everything is good here.

"I communicate with my family via WhatsApp and I still have many friends here with me. We cannot go out, but we pass time in our rooms by watching videos, singing and dancing. And we still can train and play football, which makes us happy."

They have had a rough time at this Asean Football Federation Championship, however, losing to Thailand (2-0), Myanmar (2-0) and the Philippines (7-0) before they round up their Group A campaign against hosts Singapore at the National Stadium on Tuesday.

Regardless of the result, Timor-Leste will be eliminated and will fly home on Thursday.

"The Suzuki Cup is a higher level, but there were moments where we showed we can compete, and we will keep trying to improve," noted Mouzinho.

And Maciel backed his young players to return with a vengeance in future editions.

He said: "It is not easy to play four matches in 10 days. We gave different players a chance, but it is the younger players who have taken responsibility to step up.

"We have so many teenage players like Mouzinho and Paulo Gali who have the potential to become top players not just in Asean but also Asia, and it is my job as coach and father figure to build them.

"Our domestic league is not so strong, so we need to find opportunities for them overseas. They will only get better playing in stronger teams. With more quality playing time, I believe we can make it to the semi-finals of the AFF U-23 Youth Championship, SEA Games and Suzuki Cup next year."