Bangladesh captain Jamal Bhuyan and several key players have joined the national camp ahead of their much-anticipated clash against India in the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers, scheduled for 18 November at the National Stadium in Dhaka.
Although Bangladesh’s hopes of qualification have already ended, the excitement remains high, with Jamal emphasising that the team are fully focused on preparing for what he called a “big match.”
“This is a big match, I believe,” said Jamal on Thursday. “It’s India, and there’s always a great history between Bangladesh and India. We want to win against them.”
The camp began this week with 14 players reporting, including Jamal and Sheikh Morsalin, while several others are expected to join in the coming days. Leicester City midfielder Hamza Choudhury and Canada-based Shamit Shome will join later, according to the captain.
“Today was the first day, so not everyone has joined yet,” Jamal explained. “Hopefully in three or four days the full squad will be here. Hamza and Shamit will join a bit later, and we’re hoping for a good camp.”
Spanish coach Javier Cabrera, currently in Spain with his newborn child, is set to rejoin the team on 3 November. Training will begin under the assistant coaches until his return, coinciding with the arrival of Bashundhara Kings players following their AFC Challenge League campaign in Kuwait.
Team manager Amer Khan said the early start was a deliberate move by the federation to keep the players active. “The decision to start preparation early was taken because the available players are out of action now, which makes them casual,” Amer said. “The Kings players are likely to join on 3 November, and by then the coach will also be back.”
Jamal, who came off the bench in both matches against Hong Kong after being unused against Singapore in June, admitted he is eager to start against India. “If I were the coach, I wouldn’t want to sit on the bench,” he smiled. “But of course, playing in the starting eleven depends on the coach’s decision.”
Bangladesh had initially planned to play a friendly against Afghanistan before facing India, but the fixture was cancelled after Myanmar objected to hosting Afghanistan’s qualifier in Dhaka. Instead, Bangladesh will now play Nepal on 13 November, which Amer confirmed will feature both Hamza and Shamit.
“Hamza is expected to arrive on 10 November, while Shamit has a match on the 8th, after which we’ll know,” Amer said. “Both are expected to play against Nepal.”
Jamal welcomed the change of opposition, saying it would still serve as solid preparation. “I think Afghanistan and Nepal are of a similar standard — there’s not much difference. It’ll be a good preparation match before playing India,” he said. “My club has four or five Nepali players who are in their national team, so it’ll be fun playing against them.”
Despite being out of contention, Jamal and his teammates are determined to end the campaign on a high note. “It’s India, and that alone makes it special,” Jamal said. “We’ll give everything to win.”
