Hamza Choudhury is currently Bangladesh's most prominent player. The midfielder, born in 1997, has an English father and a Bangladeshi mother. He was born in England, previously played for the country's U21 team, and expressed a desire to compete for a spot on the national team.

By 2/2024, Choudhury shifted his focus to playing for the Bangladesh national team, obtaining his passport six months later. The midfielder debuted in a 0-0 draw against India during the final qualifiers for the Asian Cup 2027 in 3/2025. To date, he has scored 4 goals in 7 matches.

Choudhury developed through Leicester City's youth academy, making his first-team debut in 2015. He then played 53 matches over eight seasons in the premier league, and 59 matches in the championship. Transfermarkt, a transfer specialized website, values this player at 5.4 million USD, approximately 140 billion VND. In the 2025-2026 season, Choudhury played 25 matches in the championship, but Leicester faces the risk of relegation to league one. The former premier league champion is currently 22nd out of 24 teams in the league, with 39 points, mot point shy of safety, with 5 rounds remaining.

Besides Choudhury, Bangladesh has 4 other foreign-born players: Tariq Kazi (Finland), Jamal Bhuyan (Denmark), Zayyan Ahmed (USA), and Shamit Shome (Canada).

Team captain and midfielder Bhuyan (number 6), born in 1990, has played 92 matches for Bangladesh – the most among the current squad. He trained and developed in Danish football but has played for Bangladesh since 2014.

Defender Tariq Kazi (number 14), born in 2000, has a Bangladeshi father and a Finnish mother. He previously played for Finland's U16 to U19 teams. However, since 2020, he has played for the Bangladesh national team and the domestic club Bashundhara Kings.

Midfielder Shamit Shome (right), born in 1997, previously played for clubs, youth teams, and the Canada national team (hai matches). However, FIFA granted Shome permission to switch and play for the Bangladesh national team starting in 2025.

Meanwhile, defender Zayyan Ahmed plays for Rimal Al-Shara, a club in UAE's third division, while forward Fahamedhul Islam plays in Serie D for Olbia Calcio.

The Bangladesh national team is training at Hang Day Stadium at 18h today. An hour and a half earlier, coach Kim Sang-sik's team also trained at the stadium. This venue is familiar to half of the summoned players, as it serves as the home ground for clubs like The Cong, Hanoi FC, and Cong an Ha Noi.

Brazilian-born naturalized midfielder Do Hoang Hen of Hanoi FC trained comfortably, awaiting his opportunity to debut for the Vietnam national team tomorrow.

Besides Hoang Hen, Doan Van Hau (number 5) and Tran Dinh Trong are also expected to play their first match under coach Kim Sang-sik. Due to various injuries, Van Hau and Dinh Trong have been absent from the national team since 7/2023 and 10/2022, respectively.

The goalkeeper position also sees intense competition among ba goalkeepers with good physique and form: Nguyen Filip (1.92 m), Dang Van Lam (1.88), and Tran Trung Kien (1.91) – from left to right.

Vietnam will host Bangladesh at Hang Day Stadium at 19h00 tomorrow, 26/3. Bangladesh, ranking 181st in the FIFA standings and 78 spots below Vietnam, is considered much weaker. However, this serves as good preparation before the team faces Malaysia in the final match of Group F in the Asian Cup 2027 final qualifiers on 31/3.

Hieu Luong - Giang Huy