Thomas Dooley made a last-minute change to Bangladesh’s final 23-man squad for the FIFA ASEAN Cup, leaving out centre-back Topu Barman because of a probable injury and bringing in forward Shahriar Emon.
The Bangladesh Football Federation announced the final squad late on Friday night, five days before the tournament begins on September 24. Bangladesh will play all three of their Division 1 Group A matches in Indonesia.
Topu had featured in the squad previously disclosed by the BFF, but Dooley decided against taking the defender to Indonesia because he has not regained full fitness from his injury.
The change sees Emon enter the final squad alongside Fahamedul Islam, Rakib Hossain, Farhaan Ali Wahid, Shuki Itofusa and Md Minhazul Karim in the forward group.
The final squad also includes three players who came through the trial process. Japan-based Shuki Itofusa and Zidane Yousuf won places, while England-based Farhaan Ali Wahid also made the cut.
United States-based goalkeeper Saif Kerawala missed out despite joining the trial process. Dooley said Kerawala could not earn a place because of some shortcomings but added that he could receive another opportunity in the future.
The squad also brings a long-awaited return for centre-back S M Monjurur Rahman, who made his Bangladesh debut against Sri Lanka in 2018. He returns after a lengthy absence from the national team.
Among the other overseas-based players who attended trials, Yasaar Tahmid and Debjit Sarkar had already left the camp.
Hamza Choudhury and Shamit Shome will also travel directly to Indonesia and join the squad there, despite not being present at the Bangladesh camp in Dhaka.
Bangladesh will open their ASEAN Cup campaign against Malaysia on September 25 before facing Singapore on September 28. They will then meet hosts Indonesia on October 1, with all three matches scheduled at Jakarta’s Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.
Bangladesh squad:
Goalkeepers: Mitul Marma, Md Sujon Hossain, Md Mehdi Hasan Srabon. Defenders: Zidane Alexander Yousuf, Md Shakil Ahad Topu, Md Saad Uddin, Md Rahmat Mia, Tariq Raihan Kazi, Zayyan Ahmed, S M Monjurur Rahman. Midfielders: Jamal Bhuyan, Md Sohel Rana, Sohel Rana, Md Ridoy, Shekh Morsalin, Hamza Choudhury, Shamit Shome. Forwards: Fahamedul Islam, Rakib Hossain, Farhaan Ali Wahid, Shuki Itofusa, Md Minhazul Karim Shadin, Shahriar Emon.
