Pakistan captain doesn’t ‘care about Hamza’ ahead of SAFF semi

Pakistan football team captain Yousuf Ijaz Butt walked into the Bashundhara Kings Arena on Friday and waved away Bangladesh’s biggest name, Hamza Choudhury, insisting his side’s stars can match anyone in the hosts’ camp.

“I don’t care about Hamza, I care about playing my good friend Jamal Bhuyan. They’re good players, but we have very good players,” the goalkeeper said a day before their semifinal clash against the hosts at the SAFF Championship 2026 at the National Stadium in Dhaka.

Sheffield United midfielder Hamza joined the Bangladesh camp on Monday after missing the opener against Bhutan. Against Sri Lanka, he led the side for the first time and ran the show for Bangladesh as a No.10, scoring in the first-half in the home sides’ emphatic 4-0 win.

Reinforcements have arrived for Pakistan following their runners-up finish in the group stage, as overseas-based players Abdullah Iqbal, Easah Suliman, Adil Nabi and Abdul Arshad have linked up with the team in Dhaka.

"There's a lot of talk about Hamza Choudhury, but we have Abdullah Iqbal, we have Easah Suliman, we have Adil Nabi, we have Abdul Arshad. So I feel that they're amazing players. I guarantee you we will have amazing players as well," Butt said.

“It is all about the team, not about any individuals. We as a collective will inshallah go and give our best against Bangladesh and hopefully it will be enough.”

Butt welcomed VAR, which SAFF is introducing for the first time rom the semifinals. Facing a home crowd, he said it would be “a big help” and make things “a little bit more structured.”

Butt also revisited the sides’ last Dhaka meeting in 2018, claiming Bangladesh “got very lucky” through an own goal. Bangladesh won that game 1-0.

Pakistan lost 3-2 to defending champions India in their opener. Butt still hopes for a rematch in the final. “One game at a time,” he added. “Now it’s Bangladesh.”