The Football Coaches Association has demanded that Bangladesh Football Federation President Kazi Salahuddin withdraw the comments he made about local coaches after Bangladesh’s failure at the SAFF Championship in Kathmandu.
Salahuddin raised questions about the abilityof all local coaches after he learned that some coaches had criticised the national team’s Dutch coaching staff over the SAFF debacle.
The BFF president also said that local coaches are not of a high enough calibre, which is why top clubs like Abahani and Sheikh Jamal depend on foreign coaches.
The FCA, however, claimed that nobody inside their organisation made any comments about the Dutch coaching staff at a press conference on Tuesday and demanded that the BFF president withdraw his comments.
‘Salahuddin is the top guardian of the nation’s football, so when he makes those types of comments we feel very distressed. It was unexpected for coach’s community,’ said FCA president Hasanuzzaman Bablu.
‘With those comments, we felt our family and our society were insulted. We strongly protest that kind of insulting comment and request the BFF president to withdraw his speech,’ he added.
Others also expressed their disappointment and pointed out that local coaches have also enjoyed success in Bangladesh football.
‘In the recently concluded football season, two professional teams guided by local coaches [treble winners Sheikh Russell and Super Cup winners Mohammedan Sporting Club Limited] won everything,’ said FCA general secretary Satyajit Das Rupu.
‘If local coaches had no potential, then that would not be possible.’
Meanwhile, former national team coach Abu Yusuf asked why Salahuddin attacked local coaches to protect national team coach Lodewijk de Kruif from criticism.
‘The coach should have taken responsibility when his team failed to perform, and then all related bodies would be responsible for the failure. I think the BFF president blamed us to protect the foreign coach and to protect themselves,’ said Yusuf.
‘It was normal that everybody pointed their fingers at the coach and the BFF when the national team failed to perform, and the related people should accept that reality,’ he added.
-With New Age input
