Bangladesh’s ASEAN Cup mission gathered pace on Saturday as the national team completed their second training session at Bashundhara Kings Arena, head coach Thomas Dooley pushing his squad through an early camp ahead of the country’s first appearance at a FIFA-organised regional tournament.
The camp opened on Thursday, when 27 of the 28 called-up footballers reported to team manager Amer Khan. Training then shifted to Kings Arena, where Dooley’s group has now logged back-to-back sessions building towards the tournament in Indonesia.
Bangladesh’s route to the FIFA ASEAN Cup came after India withdrew their name from the competition. There was some early uncertainty over Bangladesh’s own participation once the invitation arrived, but those doubts have since been cleared, and Jamal Bhuiyan’s side will now travel to Indonesia for the inaugural edition.
The ASEAN Cup represents a new level of competition for Bangladesh, with the team drawn alongside Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore in Group A. Rumman Bin Wali Sabbir sees the tournament as more than another fixture list. He believes regular exposure to stronger regional opposition can help Bangladesh raise its standards and move towards a more ambitious position in Asian football. “I think this will be challenging. I have said for a long time that Bangladesh should target being among the top 10 teams in Asia. If we want to reach that level, we must play in competitions like the ASEAN Cup,” he said to TIMES of Bangladesh.
Dooley took charge of the national team on May 22, and needed only 14 days to deliver a piece of history. On June 5, his side beat San Marino 2-1, Bangladesh’s first ever win over a European team on European soil.
Since then, chances to assess players in competitive club football have been limited, with the domestic season yet to begin. The Bangladesh Football League has also been pushed back, prompting team management to bring the national camp forward rather than wait for it.
That means the squad returns to full training after a long break following the end of last season, and defender Topu Barman expects the opening days to test the group. “The first week will be a bit tough because we have been away from football for a long time. There will be many challenges, and we need to do everything very sincerely. The coach wanted exactly this kind of time. We have two big assignments ahead, one FIFA tournament and the other the SAFF Championship. He is getting four to five weeks, and in that time we need to build our understanding among ourselves. That is a big plus point,” he said.
Bangladesh will host the SAFF Championship on home soil after the ASEAN Cup, and Barman named that tournament as the squad’s real target. “We will play SAFF in November, and playing such a big tournament before that is a very positive thing for us,” he said.
