Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) will hold a residential camp for the national team in August. The decision was taken in a virtual meeting of BFF National Teams Committee, headed by its chairman and BFF vice-president Kazi Nabil Ahmed MP, on  Wednesday at 12 pm. 

 

Deputy chairman of committee and BFF vice-president Tabith Awal, BFF General Secretary Abu Nayeem Shohag, Anwarul Haq Helal, manager of national team Satyajit Das Rupu, technical director Stuart Paul Watkiss and Imtiaz Hamid Sabuj were also present there. 

 

BFF has been staying in touch with national footballers and their respective families. They will initially call 44 booters and coaching staffs at the first week of August, who will be isolated for 10 to 15 days and undergo a COVID-19 test before starting the camp. After that, some 30 to 35 booters will be shortlisted for the final camp which is expected to kick-off at the mid of August. 

 

The isolation training camp will be held at a safe venue in Dhaka or outside of the city. National booters have been off-field for a long time, so that BFF will try to arrange some practice matches against foreign teams at foreign soil as a part of the preparation for booters.

 

BFF extended the contract of head coach Jamie Day for two years -- from mid of August 2020 to mid of August 2022 -- on Tuesday. The coach, who has been now in England, is expected to return to Dhaka in the mid of August.

 

“Our first match of joint qualifiers will be held on October 8. Coaches requested us to hold a eight to six-week training camp; so that we decided to start camp at the mid of August. We will gradually call 44 booters and coaching staffs in the first week of August. They will be isolated for 10 to 15 days and undergo a COVID-19 test. And then, we will shortlist some 30 to 35 footballers for the final camp,” Nabil said after the meeting.  

 

“The training camp will be held at a safe zone in Dhaka or outside of the city. We'll try to arrange some practice matches with foreign teams at foreign soil. But If we can’t arrange that, they have to play matches among themselves split into two teams,” he added.

 

About Jamie's arrival, the BFF VP said, “Jamie is expected to return to Dhaka on August 15 or 16. He will also be isolated for at least seven days before joining the camp.”