BFF mulls four friendlies ahead of SAFF C’ship

With most domestic clubs yet to begin their pre-season preparations, Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) is considering arranging four international friendlies for the national team during the September window as part of their build-up for the upcoming SAFF Championship at home.

“We will have a 10-day camp to prepare for the September window, which starts on September 21. We are going to arrange four matches during this window, which we will use to improve our rankings and prepare for the SAFF Championship,” BFF president Tabith Awal told The Daily Star yesterday, without revealing the opponents or venues.

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Under the supervision of German-American coach Thomas Dooley, the national players will also undergo another two-week preparation camp before the regional tournament, scheduled for November 4-17 in Dhaka.

The domestic season is set to begin on August 21 with the one-off Challenge Cup between reigning champions Bashundhara Kings and runners-up Abahani.

However, the majority of national team players come from Kings and Abahani, and neither club has started its pre-season camp yet. Both sides are still dealing with FIFA-imposed registration bans as they attempt to build their squads, raising concerns over players’ fitness ahead of the international commitments.

“The National Teams Committee is constantly monitoring players regarding their injuries, diet and fitness. We cannot depend on two clubs to do that, so we have taken this initiative,” said Tabith, who also chairs the National Teams Management Committee.

“Currently, two teams are in training -- Fortis FC and Bangladesh Police. We are hopeful that by August 1, most teams will have completed their squads and started training,” he added.

The Federation Cup and Bangladesh Football League are scheduled to begin on August 25 and August 28 respectively.

With the SAFF Championship scheduled to start five days before the November FIFA window opens on November 9, Tabith acknowledged that Bangladesh could begin the tournament without overseas-based players.

“In case the SAFF tournament starts before the FIFA window, we will have to begin the tournament without players who play for foreign clubs, and we are prepared for that,” he said.

As a result, players such as Hamza Choudhury and Fahamedul Islam are likely to miss the opening phase of the tournament.