Leicester City has refused to release Hamza Choudhury, forcing Bangladesh to head into their Nepal tour without the defensive midfielder.
There had already been uncertainty about Hamza’s availability, and now it’s confirmed — the England-born midfielder will miss the two friendly matches against Nepal. Bangladesh will play their first friendly on Saturday at Kathmandu’s Dasharath Stadium, followed by the second match at the same venue three days later.
Ahead of the tour, Bangladesh continued training at the National Stadium on Tuesday under head coach Javier Cabrera. The squad is set to fly to Nepal on Wednesday.
The Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) had been in talks with Leicester City in hopes of securing Hamza’s services. However, after he suffered a foot injury during Leicester’s match against Birmingham on Saturday, the club decided not to release him, confirmed team manager Amer Khan.
“We tried to get Hamza. The federation contacted his agent, who informed Leicester City, but since Hamza got injured in the last match, the club won’t release him for these two games,” Amer said.
There’s also concern over Faisal Ahmed Fahim, who sustained an injury during a practice match against Police FC. However, he will still travel with the team to Nepal, as confirmed by the team manager.
“We’re monitoring Fahim’s injury. He will go to Nepal with the squad, and if he’s fit, he’ll play in the matches,” Amer added.
