Tuck misses Bangladesh

Bangladesh will remember two footballers for their individual skills for many years – one is Haitian forward Sony Norde and the other is English midfielder Lee Andrew Tuck.

Tuck had spent only one season in Bangladesh three years ago but it was enough to win the hearts of countless football fans here who have not seen such a fine midfielder in the domestic league for quite a long time, not even till now.

Since leaving Abahani Limited, Tuck returned to Bangladesh with his current club, Malaysian Super League outfit Terengganu FC with a different look. 

He now has a beard regarding which he said with a laugh, “My wife doesn’t like the beard. But I like it. Ever since I grew it I’ve been playing good. It’s part of me now, it’s my lucky charm.

“A lot has changed since I left Abahani three years ago. I’ve got married, I have a baby, I’ve become more experienced as a football player, and I’m just happy to be back here.”

Tuck still remembers all the details of his solitary season with Abahani when the Sky Blues went on to become undefeated champion in the Bangladesh Premier League in the 2015-16 season.

Abahani have withdrawn their participation from the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup citing lack of preparation and I League outfit Gokulam Kerala Football Club is expected to replace them in the eight-club event, kicking off in Chittagong Saturdayhttps://t.co/qpDu0K13ll#BFF

— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) October 17, 2019

“You know that hard work pays off, I worked hard in Bangladesh to win a trophy, not just me but the whole team. We made history, we won the league, unbeaten, and I think I left on a high,” said the 31-year old. 

What are the things Tuck misses most about Bangladesh? 

He replied, “First of all, winning trophies was amazing, playing football here, winning every game, the team spirit, the mentality of Bangladesh football is great and food is fantastic too.”

Tuck joined Malaysian club Negeri Sembilan in 2017 before moving to Terengganu the following year. 

He has not won any silverware there yet as he said the Malaysian league is tougher to win.  

“Anywhere I play my target is to win trophies, we reached the Malaysia Cup final last year. We didn’t win the final but it was a great experience. The ambition next year is to win FA Cup - the Malaysian Cup. I think the league title in Malaysia is too hard to win,” he said.

Host Chittagong Abahani Limited of Bangladesh will take on defending champion TC Sports Club of Maldives in the tournament opener on Saturday as fixtures of the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup were revealed Tuesday.https://t.co/r5vCiClJyP#FOOTBALL #BANGLADESHFOOTBALL #BFF

— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) October 15, 2019

The attacking midfielder, who has been playing in Asia for around 10 years now, keeps in touch with the results of Bangladesh football. 

“The results are there that shows great improvement. I haven’t got chance to watch their (Bangladesh and Abahani) games but from the results you can see that there’s been a massive improvement,” said the Huddersfield-born footballer.

He said it was sad for him not to play the AFC Cup with Abahani. 

It was also disappointing for him after finding out that Abahani withdrew from the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup. 

“I have a good relationship with the club, the management, the players and was looking forward to seeing them. It’s a bit sad that they’re not coming,” he said.

When asked about his possible return to Bangladesh, he replied in a deep tone, “For the moment I’m happy with my team in Malaysia, I’m the captain of the team, and the club want to keep me so I’m happy. But anything’s possible. I’ve had a great experience in Bangladesh so maybe one day I will return.”

“I think now more than before it’d interest me to come play here, you can see that the teams are serious, bringing in quality foreign players, the training facilities are getting better. It would interest me now more than ever before.”