SATV Kathmandu Sept 06: Friday’s pre-match conference for the first of the two friendlies between Nepal and Bangladesh would have been different had Hamza Choudhury arrived in Kathmandu. There would have been more flashes from the cameras, and journalists would have more questions.

However, midfielder Choudhury, a key player for the 2015-16 Premier League champions Leicester City, did not want to take any risks—especially for an injury—in the matches against Nepal, said the Spaniard Javier Cabrera.

“We were in regular talks with Hamza and Leicester City,” said Cabrera, head coach of the Bangladesh senior men’s team. “But we have not brought, as what people are saying, a ‘B’ team. We have the strongest squad because we are not taking the two friendlies lightly.”

For Bangladesh, as well as Nepal, the two friendlies are a major preparation for their respective fixtures of the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers—Third Round in the upcoming months.

Bangladesh skipper Jamal Bhuyan also argued that his players were the best of those available. “We have a good league. And a good league means you have many good players from which you can select the best,” Bhuyan said. “We have been training for the friendlies for 20 days with half of the squad joining us three days ago. But we are ready and prepared since no player was away from football.”

Meanwhile, Nepal’s A-Division League has not been organised for over 800 days. “League helps create a foundation for the national team,” said Nepal’s skipper Kiran Chemjong, who has joined Bangladesh Police for the 2025 season of Bangladesh’s First Division League due to the lack of domestic football in Nepal. “I hope the upcoming generation gets to play in the league continuously.”

Meanwhile, Nepal are not letting the setbacks hold them against Bangladesh.

“We are looking forward to preparing ourselves better for the Asian Cup Qualifiers,” said the Australian Matt Ross, Nepal’s head coach. “Once the whistle blows, it is about the game we are playing.”

Asked if Nepal was breathing a sigh of relief as Bangladesh came without Choudhury, Ross argued that he too lacked some key players—Aayush Ghalan, Sumit Shrestha and Kritish Ratna Chhunju—due to the U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers underway in Tajikistan.

“And regarding Choudhury, I believe Bangladesh have a player that will not let the team feel his absence,” he added.

Meanwhile, Ross argued that he was happy to have youngsters like Subash Bam Thakuri and Kushal Deuba available for the match. “I am also sad that these two did not make it to the U23 squad,” he added. “These two are the future of Nepali football. We have to nurture them. They will be given minutes in the friendlies to show the Nepali fans what they are capable of.”

While the Nepali team sees new faces, a key figure will be playing his last matches in the national jersey. Bharat Khawas, a name that Nepali fans have been chanting for years, is retiring after the friendlies.

And Nepal’s captain, Kiran Chemjong, who entered the senior national side alongside Khawas in 2008, expects that the authorities will make his final match a moment to cherish.

“Bharat decided to retire at the right time,” Chemjong said at the conference. “As a player, you cannot play until you are 60. I am sad, but, realistically, a player must end his career someday.

“He is a good guy. His contribution to Nepali football is great. I hope that the association [ANFA] and the government will appreciate his contribution and do something for him to mark his final day in the national jersey.”

Nepal’s coach Ross expects a good crowd at the stadium because it will be his first appearance with the national side at Nepal’s home of football.

“We are looking forward to playing in front of a passionate crowd,” he said.

Since joining the Nepali side in March, Ross has not had the chance to lead the team on home turf, while having been on the touchline for four matches on foreign soil. And except for friendlies, it is unlikely for the fans to cheer the Nepali team at Dasharath Stadium anytime soon. It is because the stadium, which is currently suspended from hosting international matches by the Asian Football Confederation, needs major renovations to be allowed for AFC or FIFA tournaments.

“It is a major setback for us,” Chemjong said with a sore voice. “Nepali fans, our 12th man, have been a major boost for us.”

Recalling how Nepal restricted Jordan to a 1-1 draw in the second leg on July 28, 2011, at Dasharath Stadium after a 0-9 defeat in Jordan on July 23, Chemjong argued, “There are talks to construct new stadiums. But I do not believe that they will be prepared even in the next 10 years. But nothing is impossible. Yet, I do not see players from my generation playing at Dasharath Stadium in major tournaments anymore.”

Nonetheless, regarding the upcoming friendlies, Chemjong believes that he is happy to return to the home of Nepali football after almost two years.

“It is good news for the fans and we players as well,” Chemjong remarked. “I always love to play in our stadium.”

Nepal and Bangladesh will play their first friendly on Saturday with the match kicking off at 5:30pm. The second friendly is on Tuesday. As per the All Nepal Football Association, the winner will be decided based on the aggregate result; if it is a draw, the second match will go to a penalty shoot-out.