Bangladesh fly to Japan after China setback

Bangladesh’s women’s football team wrapped up their training camp in China on Thursday with a second consecutive defeat to Guangdong Women’s FC, losing their final warm-up match ahead of the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya.

The closed-door friendly at the Guangdong Football Base provided another stern test against a club currently sitting seventh in the Chinese top flight. Having already suffered a 2-0 defeat to the same opponents on Monday, Bangladesh fell short once again.

Reflecting on the match, Head Coach Peter Butler praised his team's stamina against a tough opponent but admitted that specific mistakes need ironing out.

"They have played a very good team, physically stronger than us. However, we matched them for long periods, and poor GK errors cost us, that’s a concern," Butler said following the defeat.

With the camp concluded, the squad’s focus now shifts entirely to the competition in Japan. Bangladesh will fly out to Japan on Friday, scheduled to touch down in Nagoya at approximately 9:00pm before travelling by bus to Osaka, where they will be based for the duration of the tournament.

Looking ahead to their Asian Games group stage, Butler offered a grounded, realistic assessment of his squad's chances against continental heavyweights.

"We know we cannot beat North Korea and South Korea in the Asian Games," Butler admitted. "However, if we can take credit from those two games with solid performances, we can set ourselves up for a good finish with Myanmar."

The British coach also used the opportunity to highlight the stark contrast in footballing infrastructure between Bangladesh and their upcoming Asian Games opponents, making an impassioned plea for better domestic development.