Rabiul Hasan made his national team debut only a year ago and shone well in the last two months netting three international goals against Cambodia, Laos and Bhutan to help Bangladesh win on each occasion. Albeit not a regular starter for the senior side yet, the young midfielder is determined to improve his skills and become the best footballer in South Asia.
The 20-year-old’s fine form in the red and green jersey along with the former club Arambagh KS prompted big-spending Bangladesh Premier League champions Bashundhara Kings to rope him in as one of the first local signings for the upcoming season.
Rabiul is set to make his debut with the new club at the ongoing Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup 2019 and before their first game against I-League outfits Gokulam Kerala FC Tuesday, he talked to the reporters yesterday regarding his thoughts on joining the new powerhouse in Bangladesh football and his ambitions to shine well in the national team as well.
“Most of the players in our country lacked professionalism. Bashundhara is a professional club which has everything to provide a player with what he needs to maintain professionalism. I have many of my national teammates in the club. If we stay and play together, it will be good for me and also for the national team,” said Rabiul.
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It is more difficult to get enough playing time being part of a star-studded squad like the Kings who have some high-profile foreign and national midfielders but Rabiul is eager to take on this challenge. “You have to take up the challenge if you have to achieve and do something good. If I can’t take the challenge, I can’t become a top player. This is why I joined Bashundhara Kings. Hopefully it will be a good outcome at the end of the season,” added the young midfielder.
“I want to be the best player in South Asia and for that, I have to do well at the best club of the country. If can’t make it into the first eleven outpacing the other good players, I can’t reach my goal. If I can’t become the best player of the country, I can’t fulfill my dream of becoming best player of South Asia.” said Rabiul, who made a late substitute appearance during Bangladesh’s last World Cup qualifier against India last week.
Playing and training alongside quality foreign players make the local players better technically which was proved by Matin Mia’s performance at the Kings last season. Rabiul said, “All of our foreign players came from the countries which are ahead of us in the (Fifa) rankings. We have many things to learn from them. They help us a lot in training. I hope at the end of the season, my game will be much better than it is now.”
Rabiul was one of the members of the BFF’s defunct academy in Sylhet and made his national youth team debut during the Saff U-16 Championship 2013. He played for Mughda Samaj Kalyan club in the Pioneer League the same year before moving to Dilkusha Sporting Club in the 3rd division in 2015. Rabiul, having the versatile ability to play at any position in midfield, joined Arambagh Krira Sangha during the 2015-16 season and spent three years there and, was made captain last season.
