Ronan Sullivan has quickly become one of the main names for Bangladesh at the SAFF U-20 tournament in Maldives. The American expatriate forward has scored two goals and made one assist in just two matches. His impact has caught the eye of fans.
Now, he is looking ahead to the semi final against Nepal on April 1. Sullivan has set a clear personal target before the match. He wants to score two goals. After training, he spoke in a video shared by the Bangladesh Football Federation. He said, “It will be a tough match. We want to win as a team.” When asked about his plan against Nepal, he replied, “I think two goals would be right.”
There is strong interest around Sullivan among football fans in Bangladesh. Many want to know more about him. But the video content shared before the match has been limited. Sullivan’s clip was only around 15 seconds long. In contrast, team manager Samid Kashem spoke for more than two minutes. Many feel that part was not needed.
Some people in football circles believe the manager has a strong influence in the setup. This is despite figures like Saeed Hasan Kanan and Shafiqul Islam Manik being part of the development committee. Age level players can be emotional and not fully professional. The manager is expected to guide them. Instead, there have been moments where he lost control and even entered the field. He also received a yellow card.
Bangladesh played India recently. The team had a recovery session the next day. They returned to training after that. Another player, Chandan Roy, shared the team’s mindset. He said, “We are mentally fit. We will have one more session before the semi-final.”
Bangladesh will face Nepal in the semi final on April 1. In the other semi final, India will play Bhutan.
