Phnom Penh: Bangladesh head coach Jamie Day has stated that his boys are ready and raring to pick up a victory in the FIFA international friendly match against Cambodia scheduled to be played tomorrow.
The Briton came up with the statement while replying to queries from journalists at a pre-match press briefing at 10:00am on Friday.
“Cambodia are a good side. We’ll have to play well if we want to get a positive result,” said Jamie.
“But we trained really well and we are looking to put in a good performance. And hopefully we can pick up a good win and take that into the June World Cup qualifying games,” he added.
Reiterating his coach’s words, skipper Jamal Bhuiyan said, “As coach said, we’ve been practicing really well. All the players are fit for tomorrow’s match.”
“We know Cambodia is a good team and they are higher up in the ranking. So, we are looking forward to the challenge,” he added.
Both the coach and the skipper said that the extra heat will not affect the game that much as it is not that different from the summer season of Bangladesh.
“Besides, we’ll be playing in the evening. So, there can be no excuses really,” said Jamal Bhuiyan.
On the other hand, Jamie Day said, “Yes, the conditions are a little different from what it is now in Bangladesh. But that is international football. You’ll have to adapt to different conditions and change your game accordingly.”
Jamal Bhuiyan, however, said that the astro-turf, on which the match will be played, might come up as an issue as the players are not very well acquainted with the artificial pitch.
Overall, the whole team is ready and prepared to give it their all and pick up a win against Cambodia tomorrow.
“A win can give us some vital ranking points. So, we’ll play to win,” said Jamie Day.
Cambodia head coach Gonzalex Dalmas Felix Agustin also underlined that his team will take to the pitch to win.
“We’re excited like always. One more test for us. We’ll try to do our best and try to make the people of Cambodia happy,” said Gonzalex Felix.
Cambodia captain Orn Chanpolin also expressed their players’ desire to win.
About selecting only U22/23 players for the match, the Cambodia head coach said that he has only made the decision to give the young players some vital game time and prepare them for the future by showing them that he believes in them.
The Cambodia-Bangladesh match is slated to kick-off at 5:30pm Bangladesh time at the Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on March 9, Saturday.
