Bangladesh women’s football team defender Afeida Khandokar was handed the captaincy after 18 players, including most seniors, boycotted training under coach Peter Butler. The lanky centre-back wore the captain’s armband in two friendlies against hosts UAE recently, both matches ending in 3-1 defeats for Bangladesh. Following her return to the country, Afeida spoke with The Daily Star’s Anisur Rahman in an interview, where she opened up about their recent tour, their experience of playing without the seniors, and a few other issues. The excerpts of the interview are as follows:

The Daily Star (DS): You have represented Bangladesh several times along with the senior players, but this time, you were probably the most experienced player in the senior squad. How was your experience?

Afeida Khandokar (AK): When I represented the national team along with the senior players, there was no pressure on me because there were players like Sabina [Khatun], Masura [Parvin], and other senior players in the team, and I just played my own game. But, in the matches against UAE, there was a bit of pressure because our team had only three weeks of preparation. Besides, we were also tired while playing the first match against UAE because we had reached there just a day before the match after a sleepless night. So, it was really hard for us to play without rest, and there was also a fear of how UAE would perform because we had no prior knowledge about them.

DS: What do you think were the differences between Bangladesh and the UAE team?

AK: The UAE players had more experience and were better at decision-making on the field. We might have failed to make the final pass, which allowed them to counter, and we conceded goals due to mistakes in defense and midfield. Another difference was the physical advantage of the UAE players, who were taller than us. Also, many players in our team represented the senior team for the first time, and a few played their first international matches. So there were some differences, but we were satisfied with our performance.

DS: Did you feel the absence of the senior players who were not part of the team?

AK: We could have fought better had the SAFF-winning squad played the matches. We might have even won the matches.However, We did not dwell too much on the absent players; rather, we focused on those who were available.

DS: How did you feel about the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) president Tabith Awal’s announcement to start the next women’s camp with 55 players, including the boycotting players, on the night you returned from UAE?

AK: We also want to put everything that happened behind us and start afresh as a team. We were really pleased to hear the announcement from the BFF president. Before leaving for Dubai, we were happy to hear that they would join the camp after the two friendly matches because we never wanted to see them outside the training camp. We always wanted to train with the seniors.

DS: How did you enjoy leading the senior national team in the two friendly matches?

AK: I never thought about leading the senior national team, but I had to do it. I tried to fulfill the responsibility I was given in both matches.

DS: How long do you think it may take for this group of young players to mature?

AK: I think the only thing this group of girls lacks is experience. If they are given opportunities to play many international matches, they will develop quickly. Our senior players have been playing international matches for the last 12 years. They also played in the SAFF Women’s Championship when they were U-16 players. We finally became SAFF Champions in 2022. The result did not come overnight; it happened over a long period. I think every player should be given time, and the results will come eventually.

DS: I want to go back a bit. What was your mental state when a group of senior players skipped training while a group of young players, including you, continued training under Peter Butler?

AK: We came here to play, and we prioritised playing, regardless of who conducted the training, because we were about to sign contracts with the federation. It is a professional environment where an individual player has to focus on her own performance.

DS: What do you expect from the Bangladesh women’s team in the upcoming AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers?

AK: We should play more beyond our comfort zone, especially beyond South Asia. We still don’t know our opponents in the Asian Cup Qualifiers. The coach will take care of how we prepare after the draw. However, we expect good results in the Asian Cup Qualifiers because the senior players will rejoin the team, and together, we will try to perform well.