Bangladesh’s preparation match against Afghanistan, scheduled for November 13 in Dhaka, will not take place. As an alternative, the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) is bringing in Nepal. On November 18, Dhaka will host the AFC Asian Cup qualifier match against India.
Hamza Dewan Chowdhury will arrive in Dhaka on November 9 to participate in these two matches. National team manager Amer Khan confirmed this on Wednesday.
The national team camp will start tomorrow, Thursday. Players have been asked to report to the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in the capital.
Regarding whether any new players will join the squad, Amer Khan said they will work with the same squad that played against Hong Kong and China. However, coach Javier Cabrera will not be present starting tomorrow. The Spanish coach is expected to arrive in the country soon, according to the national team manager.
In the previous AFC qualifiers, Fahamidul Islam received a yellow card and will not be available for the match against India. However, he will be able to play in the friendly on the 13th for Italian fourth-tier club Olbia FC. Because of this, his arrival in the country is not yet confirmed. A BFF source stated that since he cannot play against India, he will not be called for the friendly match on the 13th.
Amer Khan confirmed Hamza’s arrival on the 9th. Hamza’s team, Leicester City, will play against Norwich City in the English Championship on November 8. After that match, he will depart for Bangladesh.
However, Shomit Som’s arrival in the country has not been confirmed. His team, Cavalry FC, will play a match in the Canadian Premier League on November 3. That will be his last match before the international break in November. He will be able to come to the country after that.