Hasan Al Mamun was the first Bangladeshi footballer to wield the coveted SAFF Championship trophy in front of a packed Bangabandhu National Stadium in 2003, after regular captain Rajani Kanta Barman was suspended and missed the final against Maldives.
Hasan, who has been an assistant coach with the national team for nearly two years, spoke with The Daily Star via telephone the day before Bangladesh’s tournament opener against a considerably superior Lebanon.
This time around, the addition of two foreign teams (Lebanon and Kuwait) has made the tournament difficult for all participants. We are concentrating on team cohesion.
“A point against Lebanon will be a tremendous accomplishment… Everyone is contemplating maintaining a clean sheet during the match. However, [the match against Maldives] remains our greatest obstacle,” Hasan stated yesterday.
The 44-year-old reminisced about 2003 and shared his thoughts on the possibility of the current national team participating in the ongoing regional football tournament.
“In order to become champions, you must always possess unity, character, and form, among other qualities. During the 2003 SAFF Championship, Bangladesh received tremendous support from the local crowd, which was not the norm.
“There were skilled players on that [2003] squad, and there are technically proficient players on the current squad, but none are as talented as [playmaker midfielder] Arman Mia.”
Bangladesh could only reach the final of the SAFF Championship once in the next seven iterations after claiming their first SAFF title in their fourth attempt.
“During that time, Bangladesh was in contention for the Championship, and Bangladesh was respected by all.” The competition was so fierce, but Lady Luck was not on our side. This team has also been performing admirably, but the results have not yet been revealed.
Hasan, however, is optimistic about Bangladesh’s prospects this time around, despite the fact that the team has failed to advance past the group stage in the previous five tournaments.
“Many new players have joined the squad, and they are learning from training. I believe they are prepared for the competition and anxious to astonish everyone.
This team has a decent chance of success because our midfield is well-organized and our defense is solid. Our strategy centers on Tapu [Barman] and Jamal [Bhuiyan], who comprehend the game model better than others in their respective positions.”