Bangladesh head coach Thomas Dooley has failed to give a clear answer about his responsibility for the team’s poor results after their SAFF Championship semi-final defeat to Pakistan.
Reporters asked Dooley whether he would take responsibility for the failure after the press conference. He said he did not know what more he could have done.
“As the head of the team, I am here, so of course you will ask me that. I don’t know what more I could have done. Maybe we need to find something different. Perhaps we should allow the coaches to do more work before matches,” Dooley said.
Bangladesh entered the SAFF Championship after losing all three matches in the ASEAN Cup, including a match against Indonesia in which they conceded nine goals.
Despite playing at home, Bangladesh failed to reach the SAFF final. Asked about the future of Bangladesh football, Dooley stressed the need to improve the players.
“We have to keep developing the players. We need more matches like these, where you have to fight and prove yourself,” he said.
Bangladesh had beaten Sri Lanka 4-0 in their previous match but failed to show the same form against Pakistan. Reporters also questioned why the players showed little urgency to fight back, unlike their comeback against Hong Kong in an earlier Asian Cup qualifier.
“I wasn’t there at that time, so I can’t say much about it,” Dooley replied.
Goalkeeper Mehedi Hasan Srabon’s mistake also played a major role in the defeat. Asked whether he had spoken to the goalkeeper, Dooley said he had not.
“I haven’t asked him yet. You can surely understand the situation when something like this happens,” he said.
Dooley also admitted that his side struggled from the opening whistle.
“We couldn’t get into the game right from kick-off. Their defence was also good,” he said.
