‘The players have incredible love for the country’

Maruful Haque is undoubtedly one of the country's top coaches, with his domestic achievements underscoring his credentials. The 54-year-old added another accolade by guiding Bangladesh's youth football team to their maiden SAFF U-20 Championship title. Upon returning to Dhaka from Nepal, Maruful spoke to The Daily Star's Anisur Rahman about his journey to winning the championship. The excerpts of the interview are as follows:

The Daily Star (DS): How challenging was it to prepare for the tournament in just 15 days, also considering the players were out of action for two months?

Maruful Haque (MH): This was one of the toughest challenges of my career. I had to conduct two training cycles while also ensuring the players got enough rest. In 12 to 13 sessions, moderate fitness was prioritised alongside the application of emergency fitness components, mainly aerobic training. Tactically, I didn't focus on all aspects -- knowing the individual quality of the players, strength and playing style of other teams in the SAFF region -- but chose five effective tactics and applied them across the four matches. However, the players had maintained a level of basic fitness, which helped prepare them.

DS: How did you motivate them for the final against hosts and two-time champions Nepal, who had never lost to Bangladesh in previous four encounters?

MH: From the second day of training, I injected self-belief in the players that they could become champions. When a coach understands the pattern of the players' mentality, then he can easily guide the whole squad. I noticed an incredible love for the country, which I hadn't seen in other teams before. I tapped into this by showing them motivational images, relating to the [July-August's historic] student movement and the trophy unveiling.

DS: How do you see this squad, including forwards Mirajul Islam and Rabby Hossain Rahul, progressing to the senior team?

MH: It's too early to predict, but I believe most of this group have the potential to make it to the senior team. Ultimately, it depends on how each player develops, as 80 percent of players in our country fail due to their own actions, and the rest due to external factors like injuries, family issues, or clubs.

DS: You previously guided the senior national team through a month-long of training, and worked with U-23 team likewise, but didn't succeed. From your end, what made things click this time?

MH: The senior level was highly competitive, with the country's top players. Back then, we were behind teams like India, Afghanistan, and Maldives -- who had players like Ali Ashfaq. In South Asia's age-group tournaments, all teams are fairly equal, though India are slightly ahead. However, I've also developed myself, gained more experience, and updated my approach to fit the situation.