Abahani Limited defender Rahmat Mia was introduced as the new captain of Bangladesh Olympic football team for the upcoming Asian Games 2023 in China during a press conference at the Bashundhara Kings Arena Friday.
Jamal Bhuiyan captained the side during the last edition held in Indonesia in 2018 but the unavailability of the Bangladesh skipper this time paved the way for Rahmat who was also part of the last Asiad squad that made history by progressing to the knockout stage.
Rahmat told journalists about the differences in the team compared to the last Asian Games as the current squad is younger and less experienced.
He elaborated that many of them have never played in an event like the Asiad which could be an “opportunity” for the young guns to prove and attract the head coach Javier Cabrera's attention to be considered for the senior national side.
The Olympic football team are set to leave for Hangzhou early Saturday to take part in the 19th edition of the Asian Games which will officially be inaugurated on September 23 and conclude on October 8.
The footballers will be the first batch from Bangladesh’s contingent to travel to China as the men’s football event of the Asiad will kick off this Tuesday, four days before the opening ceremony.
Cabrera, who was also present in the press conference alongside Rahmat, will lead the Olympic team as head coach while former footballer and Bangladesh Football Federation executive committee member Bijan Barua has been named as manager.
The Spaniard will also be making his debut at the Asian Games which he labelled as an “exciting and challenging” competition and an opportunity for the players to be more competitive and raise their level.
Bangladesh are in a tough group along with hosts China, India and Myanmar, all of whom are comparatively stronger on paper.
While talking about their target, Rahmat wanted to put up good results while Cabrera said, “We are going there to win games. We know we have to prove ourselves that we are at the level to compete against everyone.”