Sullivan twins in final squad, other overseas-based players omitted

Bangladesh Football Federation on Friday named its final 23-member squad for the upcoming SAFF U-20 Championship, with only two overseas-based players -- US-born twins Ronan and Declan Sullivan -- making the cut from a preliminary group of five foreign-based players.

Ronan and Declan, both 18, have been eligible to represent Bangladesh through their maternal roots.

Under the guidance of Irish coach Mark Edward Cox, the U-20 contingent will depart Dhaka on Saturday morning for the Maldives to participate in the tournament, which saw Bangladesh becoming runners-up in its preceding installment.  

Bangladesh will face Pakistan on March 24 and defending champions India on March 28 in three-team Group B, while Group A features Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Previously, five expatriate players -- including Farzad Aftab, Amir Sami and Ibrahim Nawaz, alongside Sullivan brothers -- had joined the training camp alongside 28 home-based players in a 33-member preliminary squad.