Five key members of Bangladesh’s women’s national football team have returned from Bhutan to rejoin head coach Peter Butler’s training camp in preparation for the upcoming international tour of Jordan.
Maria Manda, Monika Chakma, Ritu Porna Chakma, Rupna Chakma, and Shamsunnahar Sr touched down in Dhaka on Saturday morning, more than a month after travelling to Bhutan to take part in the BOB National Women’s League. The players had been training with local clubs but managed to play just one match since the league’s delayed start on 10 May.
Maria and Rupna had previously trained under Butler for five days before leaving for Bhutan on 13 April. Monika, Ritu Porna, and Shamsunnahar Sr had departed earlier, on 6 April.
According to a source close to the women’s national team, the five returnees will rejoin 41 other players in the ongoing training camp tomorrow. The expanded camp is part of Bangladesh’s preparations for two friendlies later this month — against hosts Jordan on 31 May, and Indonesia on 3 June — ahead of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers in Myanmar in June.
The source also confirmed that three players currently in camp — Surma Jannat, Swarna Rani, and Aklima Khatun — are carrying injuries and their availability for the Jordan tour remains uncertain.
Notably, five other senior players currently featuring in the Bhutan league — Sabina Khatun, Krishna Rani Sarkar, Sanjida Akhter, Matsushima Sumaya, and Masura Parvin — have not been called up for the current tour. Despite strong performances in Bhutan, including goal hauls by Sabina and Krishna in a record win, head coach Butler is believed to have concerns over their form and fitness in the context of upcoming international commitments.
A final squad of 23 players will be named shortly before the team departs for Jordan on 27 May.