Jordan Plays Columbia Injury List Grows Ahead Of World Cup

(MENAFN- Jordan Times) AMMAN - As Jordan prepares to play Columbia on Sunday in their final tune-up match ahead of World Cup kicking off June 11, Jordan's squad got another setback with news that key young striker Ibrahim Sabra, had joined players sidelined with injury.

The ankle injury during practice added to the woes of the coaching staff who were already challenged with options as key players sitting out the lineup include star striker Yazan Nue'imat and Adham Qurashi, who have been out the past few months. Before the lineup was finalised, Isam Smeiri, who had excelled in the Arab Cup in Nue'imat's absence was injured during practice. Now Sabra, one of the key stars of Jordan's U23 team, who plays for Croatia's NK Lokomotiva Zaghreb, is out for the World Cup as well.

The match against 7-time World Cup qualifier, 13^th ranked Columbia which will be played in San Diego at 4:00 pm Pacific time Sunday (2:00 am Jordan local time on Monday), will be the final friendly before the World's biggest sporting event - the 2026 World Cup starts in the US, Canada and Mexico.

Earlier in the week, World 63rd ranked Jordan lost to 12-time qualifier World 19^th ranked Switzerland 4-1 in a match that saw clear defensive errors and Jordan's young star Odeh Fakhoury scoring the sole goal. Now, the team will seek to amend mistakes before heading to Portland where the squad will be based for their first two World Cup matches.

The Kingdom kicks off World Cup Group J matches in San Francisco against FIFA 24th ranked Austria, on June 17. They play 28th ranked Algeria on June 23 before leaving to Dallas to play World 3rd ranked reigning World champions Argentina on June 28 in the last Round 1 match.

Despite the challenging group, Jordan's Moroccan coach Jamal Sellami, a World Cup player at France 1998, believes his side is capable of making a strong impression and has motivated players underlining the“honor and responsibility of being the first team to represent Jordan in the World Cup.”

The team is the focus of a whole nation. In an interview with CNN, Jordan Football Association President HRH Prince Ali told Becky Anderson,“The players will give it all they have. We have had some injuries including the best striker in Asia, Yazan Nu'eimat, but the team has a lot of potential. He described the Kingdom's qualification as hugely inspiring for the young generation, describing Jordan as“the representative of the Levant.”

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