Bangladesh head coach Thomas Dooley has urged supporters and the media to be patient with the national team, saying meaningful progress will require time rather than instant results.
Bangladesh are set to fly to Indonesia tonight for the FIFA ASEAN Cup, where they will face opponents ranked significantly higher in the world. Indonesia are 118th in the latest FIFA rankings, followed by Malaysia at 136th and Singapore at 148th, while Bangladesh sit 181st.
Dooley believes the gap cannot be closed through a short training camp.
“Some people on social media do not understand the reality of football,” Dooley told reporters on Saturday. “Improvement does not happen overnight, and a coaching staff cannot transform a team instantly.”
The German coach believes it could take two or three years for Bangladesh to move from around 180th in the rankings towards the 150s.
“Expecting us to go out and easily beat these teams is unrealistic,” he said.
Preparation has also been a concern. Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore have played four or five competitive matches in the past month and trained together for six to eight weeks. Most of Bangladesh’s locally based players, meanwhile, went almost two months without team training after the San Marino match.
“Professional pre-seasons typically take six weeks with multiple daily sessions, but we are trying to get our players match-ready in just four weeks,” Dooley said.
Players such as Hamza Choudhury and Shamit Shome arrived with club preparation behind them, but Dooley said the wider difference could not be solved through effort alone.
“Match outcomes depend heavily on league strength, player development, and preparation levels rather than effort alone,” he said.
He pointed to Indonesia’s six or seven players competing in top European leagues, including Germany, the Netherlands and Italy, as evidence of the difference in player development.
Dooley also defended his players following criticism after Bangladesh’s 2-0 defeat to Malaysia.
“When we lose 2–0 to Malaysia, people attack the team and undermine the confidence of players like Abbas,” he said. “Fans and media need to support the players rather than tear down their future.”
The coach has also refused to rush Topu Barman back from a calf injury, with scans showing he needs another two weeks before training. The SAFF Championship remains a bigger priority.
Dooley also opted to add a forward rather than another defender, believing Zidan Yousuf, Manik, Sohel and Tariq Kazi provide enough defensive cover.
Nine expatriate players are included in the squad, adding experience from different football environments.
Captain Jamal Bhuyan, however, believes Bangladesh should not enter the tournament expecting the worst.
“We know it is going to be difficult. To be honest, the matches will be very tough because both Indonesia and Malaysia are extremely strong teams,” Jamal said.
He recalled Bangladesh’s run at the 2018 Asian Games, when they reached the Round of 16 despite being drawn alongside Uzbekistan, Thailand and Qatar.
“Nobody believed we would make it to the next round, the Round of 16. But we did exactly that and qualified. Something similar could happen this time around as well,” he said.
