Dhaka: Canada-based midfielder Shamit Shome arrived in the capital this morning to make his Bangladesh debut in the Asian Cup Qualifier against Singapore scheduled for June 10 at National Stadium. The 27-year-old midfielder, born to Sylheti parents in Canada, plays for Canadian Premier League club Cavalry FC. He received approval from FIFA Player Status Committee to wear the Bangladesh jersey on May 6 and has been waiting to make his debut for the Bangladesh national football team since then.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Bangladesh national football team head coach Javier Cabrera earlier selected 26 footballers for the two home matches against Bhutan and Singapore, including six expatriate footballers in the squad. The expatriate players are Hamza Choudhury from England, Tariq Raihan Kazi from Finland, Fahamedul Islam from Italy, Jamal Bhuyan from Denmark, Syed Shah Quazem Kirmanee from Canada, and Shamit Shome from Canada.
Earlier, England-based midfielder Hamza Choudhury debuted for Bangladesh on March 25 against India in the Asian Cup Qualifying opener. Fahamedul Islam and Shamit Shome have now joined the Bangladesh team to make their debut.