Plaantik Exclusive: Jamal Bhuyan

Jamal Bhuyan's dreams to be a professional footballer almost ended in his teenage years where he was a victim at a shooting incident. Today, he is the captain of the Bangladesh national football team. In this Plaantik Exclusive, Jamal Bhuyan tells his story: his early days at Denmark, the state of football in Bangladesh, staying fit...and listening to Will Smith.

PART 1: THE EARLY DENMARK DAYS & MOVING TO BANGLADESH

Plaantik: It’s a pleasure having you in Plaantik. Let’s just dive right into it. You grew up in Denmark, you were born 2 years before Denmark won the Euros in 1992. What was it like growing up in Denmark during that period, and who was your footballing hero while growing up?

Jamal Bhuiyan: The first one was Ronaldo, the original one, R9 and later it became Zidane. But in my young years I was especially into Ronaldo (R9) and Romario, if you can remember him. I really used to follow them.

And as to the first question, you mentioned that Denmark won the Euros in 1992; it was a big thing in Denmark. The next ten years, football was at the highest and everything became really professional; money went up, sponsorships went up. All the youth people, they started playing football; so, it was a huge thing for Denmark and it had a big impact on the country.

Plaantik: How did you get into football?

Jamal: I started to play football in the streets. I used to play with two other guys- one of them plays in Turkey right now and the other one, he doesn’t play anymore. I kept playing and when I went to high school, there were so many footballers at my high school- such as the one from Turkey and Daniel Wass, who plays for Valencia today. So yeah, when you are surrounded by people who are likely to play football all the time, that’s how you get into it.

Plaantik: And are you still in touch with Daniel Wass?

Jamal: No, we still live in the same area as we grew up, almost. Of course, he bought a bigger house now and I too bought a bigger house; but we both grew up in a small project where there was a lot of crime and a lot of gangsters and stuff like that. So, after we both earned a good amount of money, we moved out of that neighborhood.

Plaantik: We heard the stories about you getting shot 4 times in the neighborhood. Can you tell us something about the episode and how it affected you as a person?

Jamal: It happened after school. I was on my way home after school; I was about to meet my friends and we used to play indoor football, like futsal, every Friday. On my way to that spot, I was walking with some of my schoolmates, and some guy ran by us and told us, “You need to get out of this area.” And we were like, “No, it’s our home, it’s our hood, we grew up here. It’s our field.”

And then one minute later, I got shot and the other guys got shot as well. I got shot in the elbow, under my chest and two times on the ribs. But I got a lot of attention because I had just signed my first contract at the time with FC Copenhagen. At that time I was one of the upcoming stars for the youth academy in Copenhagen. So, the newspapers wrote about me and not my friends, which I don’t see as a good thing. They should’ve written about them as well and not just about me.

As a person, you know, I got really mad, angry, because you are in a really good period of your life, in a good age of your life. Like when you are 15-16, you go to college, and for example the girls, they like you, you have football, you have the school- so everything is in place. For me, it was like that. So it was a very very bad moment for me and it affected me a lot.

First 4-5 months, I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t talk properly; and when I came back, I saw the other footballers, the other teammates, they were ahead of me and I had to come back, had to work extra hard. I had to do extra practice, extra gym, and stuff like that. So, when you face adversity like that, I think you become stronger.

But when you are in the moment, you don’t feel like you become stronger. You just feel like everybody is ahead of you. But after you look back at it, you realize, “Okay, I actually got stronger at this. How can I keep pushing myself to become something?”

Plaantik: Alright, so why Bangladesh? Why not Denmark? Was it a tough choice to make?

Jamal: Yeah, it was a tough choice. But then again, it’s my parents’ country, so if I made a difference and became something in Bangladesh, I thought I would make them proud, even though they would say, “You can just stay here in Denmark and live a safe life.” 

One of the reasons I chose Bangladesh was to make something, to become something in Bangladesh and be a name in Bangladesh. If I made a difference for 5 million people in Denmark (the population of Denmark), I can make a difference for 10 million people in Bangladesh. And that would mean everything to me. I have a lot of family (in Bangladesh) also. So (I thought) if I come here and they see me, I can make them proud too, not only my parents.

But yeah, I wanted to make my family proud along with all the Bangladeshi people and all the upcoming footballers. So that’s what was in my mind when I came here.

Plaantik: Adjusting to life in Bangladesh must have been difficult for you. What were some of the biggest challenges that you faced in adjusting to life here?

Jamal: The weather, I think. Denmark is cold compared to Bangladesh and in Bangladesh it is very humid. So, that was a big challenge for me. Also, sometimes the food. So yeah, the food and the weather, I think.

Plaantik: And now obviously you’re the captain of the national team. How does that feel?

Jamal: (chuckles) It feels good, it’s an amazing feeling!

PART 2: JAMAL BHUIYAN- THE PERSON

Plaantik: Let’s talk about Jamal Bhuyan, the person. You try to stay fit throughout the year. How do you do it, what’s your routine?

Jamal: The first thing I do- eat breakfast. I eat a small breakfast and then I go to the gym. I do some gym-work and then I come back, eat some more food, and then I sleep maybe for one hour. Then I prepare myself for the practice. The fitness level is always important when you are a professional athlete; so, you have to always think about what to eat, what to drink, what to do, what not to do.

There are a lot of times when I have vacation with my friends and they want to go out and have fun. But I have to say “No” because I know I have duties, maybe after 1 or 2 weeks. So, I have to take care of myself, I have to look after myself because it’s my job. If I lose that job, it means everything to me. So it’s important for me to, as I said, eat well, go to the gym, and go to bed early.

Plaantik: What about outside of football? How do you spend time outside football?

Jamal: When I have vacations, I of course spend time with my family. We have a beautiful garden where I spend a lot of time with my mom. And then sometimes my friends come over; we sit and talk about the old days, we go somewhere to eat. So that’s what we do. I don’t think I am that explosive guy outside the field, like "I want to do this” or “I want to do that”; no, I am a more chillax person. I want to chill, just be comfortable.

Of course, I am another person when I play football. I am the aggressive one; I am the one who screams, I am the one who tells people what to do. So I am two different kinds of person- when I am home, I am all relaxed.

Plaantik: Speaking of the good old times, as you were saying, what do you miss the most about Denmark?

Jamal: I think, my friends. Of course, when you come to a new country, you are going to have new friends. But your childhood friends will always be your childhood friends. You will always click with your childhood friends even if you haven’t seen them for 2-3 years. When you meet them, it’s like, “What’s up? Do you wanna hang out?” You can do nothing with your childhood friends and still have a great time. So, that’s what I miss the most.

PART 3: JAMAL BHUIYAN- THE FOOTBALLER, PLAYING FOR BANGLADESH, AND CLUB FOOTBALL

Plaantik: Now we are going to talk about Jamal Bhuiyan as a player- club and country. So, we interviewed our former head coach, Lodewijk de Kruif a while back, a few times actually. And we always spoke about bringing in foreign players from abroad. You were the first to come through, right? So, what was your debut for Bangladesh like?

Jamal: My first game was in Nepal. I think there were around 25-30 thousand people. At that time, there were a lot of fans coming to our practice before the match and asking me questions about, “Do you think you are the right one to play for Bangladesh? What are the Bangladeshi coaches saying, what are the Bangladeshi players saying?” In my head, I was like, “I will play my game.” We lost that game, but I remember it was a good match, a lot of intensity in that match. The crowd was excited, so it was a good match for me.

Plaantik: Were you always a midfielder?

Jamal: No, I was not always a midfielder. I played in many positions- Right Back, Right Winger, Number 10. I became a midfielder because I was aggressive and I liked to tackle. I like going into the fights (for the ball). So the coach moved me in the middle of the field and he said, “Go in there and do your thing.”

Plaantik: Bangladesh Football in general has gone through some changes in recent time. For example, we have Jamie Day as our coach right now; he is in charge and he is bringing in new insights and methods into our game. What has the experience been like under him and what is he doing differently compared to previous coaches?

Jamal: Jamie has been a player before and you can see that when we have our practices going on; cause sometimes he participates in the practice, which is very good for us. He shows us sometimes things like which pass to do, which pass not to do, where to stand, where not to stand and he talks about intelligent players, how they think- he talks a lot about those aspects. And then he tells you directly what he wants instead of putting it in a wardrobe and hiding it in there. He just tells you directly what he wants from you, “I want this from you; if you can’t give me that, I am going to take another player.”

He is also different in the way that he always asks you, “How are you? How are you feeling? Everything good?” He wants to know everything about you- like if you get sick, he wants to know everything about you because he knows everything has an effect on you. So, in that terms, he is very good. He is very different. He is always smiling. He is always making jokes, but during practice he is very serious. He is a professional.

Plaantik: Moving to domestic football now for a bit, tell us about your club football journey so far from initially joining Sheikh Jamal to then playing for Sheikh Rasel and now being at Saif Sporting- how has the club football scene evolved in the last 4-5 years.

Jamal: Compared to when I came, I think there are more companies investing now, more sponsorships, better teams, better foreigners; so that’s the big difference from when I started. When I started, there were maybe 2 or 3 teams which were very good compared to all the other teams. Now there are 6 to 7 teams who can compete with each other. So yeah, that’s the big difference.

Plaantik: We recently found out who our qualification opponents are going to be for the 2022 World Cup. Qatar must bring back many fond memories for you. India is going to be a tough opponent as well, but how do you look at our chances and how do you feel we are going to do in the tournament?

Jamal: It’s a good group for us and I think we have good chances for qualifying in the next round. Of course, I think Qatar is the number 1 country in Asia right now; it’s the best team since it just won the Asian Championship. So, I think Qatar is number 1, but I think we have a good chance to win. Also, as the captain, I have to believe and we have to win.

Of course, I am going to be disappointed if we don’t go through. Everybody who is a footballer or a supporter or fan of Bangladesh, they expect Bangladesh to go through. So, let’s see what’s going to happen but I have a strong feeling.

Plaantik: We were drawn with Australia in the last qualifiers. What was that like? How was it playing against the Socceroos, home and away?

Jamal: It was a good experience, of course. It was good to play against Premier League players at that time (Tim Cahill and Aaron Mooy). Jedinak was also there. So, those guys were very good and it was a good experience for me and my team. But then again, it’s all about winning, and of course, I was disappointed. Maybe for someone it’s a big experience, but after the game as an athlete you’re always disappointed when you lose a game. So it was a good experience but at the same time we lost. So, we don’t think about the big names and stuff like that.

PART 4: QUICKFIRE ROUND

Plaantik: This is the quickfire round, so you got to say whatever’s on the top of your head. So, your favorite football club?

Jamal: Real Madrid.

Plaantik: Favorite player who doesn’t play right now?

Jamal: Zinedine Zidane.

Plaantik: Favorite player who plays right now?

Jamal: (N’Golo) Kante.

Plaantik: We think we know the answer to the next question but we will still ask you: which is the favorite goal that you scored?

Jamal: Would you say Qatar? I’d say that too.

Plaantik: For a plaantik (penalty kick), where do you place it? Do you place it top-right, panenka, or just power it through the middle?

Jamal: (laughs) That’s a secret!

Plaantik: We’ll keep the secret then. If your house was on fire and you had to pick one jersey from your locker, which is the one jersey that you pick and run?

Jamal: The Bangladesh jersey, the one I scored in Qatar.

Plaantik: What is your favorite Bangladeshi food?

Jamal: The food I like is Samosa.

Plaantik: And your favorite Danish food?

Jamal: My favorite Danish food is rugbrød (Rye bread). It’s a black bread. You don’t have it in Bangladesh.

Plaantik: Adidas or Nike?

Jamal: Nike.

Plaantik: Favorite musical artist or band?

Jamal: I like Will Smith’s music; even though he doesn’t sing that much. I also like Michael Jackson.

Plaantik: Favorite football boots?

Jamal: The ones I have right now- Mercurial.

Plaantik: And finally, if you weren’t a footballer, what would Jamal Bhuyan be?

Jamal: I would be a…well, I never actually thought about that.

PART 5: THE HARD HITTING QUESTIONS

Plaantik: We all go through ups and downs. But what motivates you to keep going as a footballer and as a person?

Jamal: When you have a dream and you reach that dream, you are going to have new dreams. For me as a person, I always set goals; So, when I reach a goal, I am going to have a new goal. For example, when I was not the captain of the Bangladesh team, I had the goal of becoming the captain one day. Then I reached that goal and now my goal is to win as much as possible being the captain.

You always find new ways to motivate yourself. If you can’t motivate yourself, you are going to find it really hard to play football.

Plaantik: You recently said, cricket may still be the number 1 sport in Dhaka, but outside Dhaka football is the number 1 sport. A lot of people may not agree to that; what do you have to say to them?

Jamal: Because I am a football player, when I play in the stadium in Dhaka, I don’t see so many people as I see outside of Dhaka. When I go outside Dhaka, I see full stadiums compared to when I am in Dhaka. So that’s why I am saying what I am saying. Cause when I go to Sylhet, Chittagong, or wherever- I see full stadiums which I don’t see here. That’s why I said cricket is number 1 in Dhaka.

Plaantik: Your parents are from Kishoreganj where you do a lot of interesting work. Can you tell us a bit about that?

Jamal: Yes, we have a school in my home village in Kishoreganj. We have a local team; it is called Mohannah Football Club (20:42). We have a mosque that we have built. My family has also built bridges. The school is a public school. We have two schools in Kishoreganj. There is a road coming up in my village in Kishoreganj; it’s going to be called “Jamal Bhuyan road”. So, I am very proud of that. Thanks to the MP in Kishoreganj for doing it. So, in my home village I have a lot of things going on- supporting the local people, helping the people out. Because, of course, it’s my parents’ city so it means a lot for me.

Plaantik: You once gave a very passionate press conference a few years ago about the winning mentality. Do you think Bangladesh Football still lacks that winning mentality?

Jamal: Yeah, I actually said that at that time because there was so much about the team, and the questions were always about, “Do you think you are going to win? Are you not going to lose? But they are so much better than you; We don’t think you can win;” and stuff like that, so when people are telling you that you are not going to win all the time, eventually the players will think, “Oh, we are not going to win.”

So you have to turn it around and tell people you can win, you can do it. So that’s why I said the winning mentality is everything for me.

Plaantik: So what was it like commentating on La Liga with Joe Morrison and John Burridge? Is that a career path we might see you taking after you hang up your boots?

Jamal: Maybe! It could be; it was a really good experience for me. I think I am the first Bengali to do that- go outside and be a (football) pundit outside of Bangladesh. So it was a huge thing, not only for me but also for Bangladesh to have a person who participated in the La Liga studio.

Overall, it was very good for me and I got good response from them as well; they want to hire me again next season and they actually called me a few times this season, but I didn’t have time to go since I had matches. I had to play.

Plaantik: When you retire from the game, what do you want your legacy to be in Bangladesh Football?

Jamal: That people remember me as a good person, first of all. As a footballer, I want people to remember me for what I’ve done for the country- the footprint I have left, paved the way for other footballers, and for the Bengalis (Bangladeshis) who live outside of Bangladesh that they can also play in Bangladesh and there are also opportunities for them. Generally- for example, I was in the darkest corner one time, and if I could do it, come from nothing to become the national team captain of Bangladesh, then everybody can do it. But it takes a lot of hard work. So, I think that is my legacy, that I can help somebody to be somebody.

PART 6: FINAL THOUGHTS

Plaantik: Any parting thoughts, remarks, or messages for football fans of Bangladesh or football fans in general?

Jamal: We have some games upcoming. I hope that the fans, the supporters, will come to support us, especially when we play in Bangabandhu National Stadium; that’s the most important thing.

Keep calm and love football.

(The interview was taken in August, 2019)

BY NAFIS IMTIAZ ONISH