Anisur Rahman

Having strengthened their foothold in the domestic circuit by winning a third consecutive Bangladesh Premier League title, Bashundhara Kings are setting their sights on becoming the best club in South Asia.

Though promoted football clubs usually struggle to survive in country’s top-tier football league, Bashundhara Kings have bucked the trend and have made a piece of history too with a third consecutive Bangladesh Premier League title.

Bashundhara Kings coach Oscar Bruzon termed the triumph of the hattrick title of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) as the ‘toughest and sweetest’ one compared to their previous two league titles.

Due to the domestic and international engagements at the clubs or national team level, top footballers hardly get the scope to enjoy the religious festivals and vacations with family members, relatives and friends. And for some booters who get to be on leave but have to head to the other side of Padma river from Dhaka, most of their time would be spent crossing the river via ferry.

After working with the country’s budding gymnasts for over two months, Korean coach Cho Sung Dong realised that Bangladeshi gymnasts and the coaches not only lack basic techniques but also trail in their thought processes toward the game.

Since the emergence of Enamul Hossain Razib as the country’s fifth and last Grandmaster in 2008, no Bangladeshi chess player has won a single GM norm.

When it comes to the country’s gymnastics, Bangladeshi descent Margarita Mamun has perhaps been the lone consolation amid Bangladesh’s never-ending failure in the Olympic Games and, at the same time, she has likely been the sole source of inspiration for the country’s gymnasts.

Robson Robinho was one of the major architects behind Bashundhara Kings’ domestic double in his debut season in Bangladesh football, scoring 24 goals.

The Daily Star (DS): What was your first impression of Bangladesh?

Before the departure of the national football team for Jakarta on Friday for their FIFA friendly against Indonesia and the ensuing Asian Cup Qualifiers in Malaysia, the national team’s head coach Javier Cabrera remained optimistic about their chances despite the absence of experienced forwards in his squad.

Bangladeshis are more familiar with amateur boxing, which they have competed in during different games like Olympics, Asian Games, South Asian Games and Commonwealth Games.

Bangladesh Premier League champions Bashundhara Kings’ 4-0 capitulation against Indian Super League outfit ATK Mohun Bagan in the AFC Cup -- which came just a month after Abahani lost 3-1 to the same side -- may have shocked spectators, but both matches highlighted the gulf in quality between players of Bangladesh and India at the international level.

“Because my father, who was a farmer, did a lot to empower me to pursue my dreams, I asked him to stop working and rely on me since I am earning handsome amounts by playing football,” Chittagong Abahani midfielder Sohel Rana said as he spoke of his father.

This particular story begins from around 2018, even though the protagonist's story was set into motion much earlier. It was around four years ago when Abu Saied, son of an average farmer, had refused to succumb to his father's demands at a pivotal juncture of his life and, instead, chose the more risky road, one that is less traversed by, a route which is all but forbidden to most as the long and arduous trek through the forest of dreams happens to be filled with thorny uncertainties.  

Bangladesh’s reliable centre-back Tapu Barman boasts the experience of playing under a number of foreign coaches at the club level and the national team.

 “Having offered prayer at the mosque in the morning, I could not have sweetmeats like semai, payes or firni. Instead, I had usual breakfast at the hotel,” Bangladesh national football team striker Nabib Newaj Jibon recalled with anguish the memories of the Eid that he had to spend away from home while on tour to Laos for the first leg of the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup Preliminary Joint Qualification in June 2019.

Oscar Bruzon, who has coached in Spain, India, Maldives and Bangladesh, has reached a milestone of guiding Bashundhara Kings in 100 games  as they played against Swadhinata Krira Sangha on Sunday. The Spaniard, apart from working as the head coach of Bangladesh national football team, had already steered Kings to two Bangladesh Premier League, two Federation Cup and one Independence Cup since he took over in 2018. The 44-year-old coach talked to The Daily Star's Anisur Rahman and expressed his views on different aspects of the game. The excerpts of the interview are as follows: 

39-year-old Afusi shared his past experiences and goals for the second phase of the league with The Daily Star’s Anisur Rahman. The excerpts are below:

The Daily Star (DS): How was your maiden coaching experience long after retiring from football?

Match-fixing in Bangladesh’s domestic football is nothing new, something that keeps rearing its ugly head almost every season.