The Dhaka part of the ongoing Bangabandhu Cup Football Tournament kicks off today, with top-ranked Bahrain Under-23 taking on Singapore Under-23 in their Group B match at the Bangabandhu National Stadium. Bangladesh Football Federation will host a total of five matches at the BNS including a semi-final and the final on February 6 and 8 respectively. The Singapore team, who started their campaign with a narrow 2-3 defeat to Thailand Under-23 team on January 30 in Sylhet, will take the field to keep their semi-final hopes alive by defeating the Bahrain Olympic side.
Bahrain, the 110th ranked team, in the latest FIFA ranking, were the last team to arrive in Dhaka to take part the tournament on January 30 after participating in the Under-23 Gulf Cup, held from January 16 to 27 in Bahrain.
Even though it will be a match between two Under-23 teams, Bahrain dominate their head-to-head record with six wins in their bag while losing only once against Singapore.
Singapore coach Richard Bok Kok Chuan said they would have to face the top-ranked team of the tournament today. ‘Bahrain are the favourites in this tournament. So, it will be a tough task for us,’ he said.
‘We will have to play our best to fight against them.’
Meanwhile, the English coach of Bahrain, Adrian Richard Whitbread, said they were here to win the title.
‘We are hopeful to return home winning the tournament as the top favourite,’ said 43-year-old coach, who also guided the national team in the Asian Cup earlier this month.
‘We came here with a bunch of talented players, who are eager to do something,’ he said.
-With New Age input
