Abdur Rahim

Abdur Rahim (; 1932 – 30 October 2004) was a Bangladeshi football manager and player. He represented the Pakistan national team during his playing career and was later head coach of the Bangladesh national team on a record seven different appointments, including for the country's maiden AFC Asian Cup appearance. In 1980 he received the National Sports Awards, for his contribution to Bangladeshi football.

Club career He started playing for local club Dhaka Sporting and later played in the First Division for Dhaka Wanderers, as a ninth grader student at St. Gregory's High School. With the Wanderers he won the league title in 1950, before moving to Fire Service AC in 1951. He later played in the Calcutta Football League with Mohammedan SC and East Bengal. He scored a brace on his debut for Kolkata Mohammedan against Kalighat FC. In 1953, he returned to Dhaka Wanderers, winning the First Division title for four straight seasons from 1952 to 1956.

International career Pakistan national team in 1955, with Rahim (fourth from middle left).

On 14 December 1955, Rahim represented East Pakistan in an exhibition match against the Pakistan national team. His team were defeated 1–3.

His performances that year earned him a call up to the Pakistan national team for the 1955 Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament held in Dhaka. Although he did not make an appearance during the tournament, he made his debut in a friendly against the India later that month, coming on as a substitute for Masood Fakhri and setting up a goal for his East Pakistani teammate, Tajul Islam Manna.

Coaching career Club In 1958, only a couple of years after ending his playing career, Rahim took charge of Dhaka Wanderers and guided the club to their seventh league title, having won the previous six as a player. Rahim remained at the helm until 1972, in a period which saw the club rarely challenging for the league title. In 1973, Rahim received advanced coaching training from Germany. In 1975, Rahim managed Victoria SC, and although during his tenure at the club they languished in mid-table, he notably converted central defender Sheikh Mohammad Aslam into a forward in 1979. Aslam went on to score a record 177 domestic league goals over the next two decades. He is also credited for scouting Khurshid Alam Babul, a player who later captained the national team.

In 1981, he coached Abahani Krira Chakra to the club's third First Division title. In 1982, after Abahani lost the league title to arch-rivals Mohammedan SC, Rahim departed the club, stating "আমি কুফা কোচ আর কোচিং করবো না" . In 1983, Rahim joined Mohammedan as assistant to head coach Golam Sarwar Tipu. Following his stint with Mohammedan, Rahim went onto coach mid-table club Rahmatganj MFS, before focusing on grassroots football. Rahim was also one of the first coaches in the country to introduce monthly salaries for players in the domestic league during his time with Victoria.

In 1975, Rahim was appointed head coach of the Bangladesh national football team for the 1975 Merdeka Cup held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Later, Rahim served as the assistant coach of Bangladesh U19 during the 1978 AFC Youth Championship held in Dhaka.

In October 1979, Rahim was appointed as the head of the Bangladesh national team for the 1980 AFC Asian Cup. Despite almost a year of training, Bangladesh failed to secure a victory in any of the tournament games, although they put up a good fight against North Korea and Syria, both of which ended in defeat. Rahim's Bangladesh squad was one of the youngest in the tournament, featuring teenage forwards Mohammed Mohsin and Abdus Salam Murshedy. The game is also renowned for Ashrafuddin Ahmed Chunnu's hat-trick, marking the first in the national team's history. Rahim remained in charge during the Merdeka Cup later that year.

In January 1985, Rahim took charge of the national team for the fifth time in preparation for the 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification – AFC first round. It marked the first time the country would participate in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. After three consecutive defeats, Rahim's side secured their first victory in the qualifiers by defeating Indonesia 2–0 at the Bangladesh Army Stadium on 2 April 1985. Bangladesh finished their qualifying campaign at the bottom of their group with two victories and four defeats from six games.

Rahim returned once again as the national team coach for the 1987 South Asian Games held in Calcutta. Rahim's side entered the tournament without key players Mohamed Mohsin, Sheikh Aslam and Ranjit Saha, as Bangladesh failed to qualify for the finals for the first time. They also lost the bronze medal match to Pakistan.

Rahim served as head coach of Bangladesh U16 at the 1990 AFC U-16 Championship qualifiers and left a notable mark despite not advancing to the main round. Draws against Japan U16 and Thailand U16, coupled with a 4–0 victory over Malaysia U16, secured a group runners-up finish. His seventh and final stint as senior national team coach was at the 1990 Asian Games, where Bangladesh finished at the bottom of their group with heavy defeats against Asian giants Japan and Saudi Arabia.

Managerial statistics September 1990October 1990

Honours Player Dhaka Wanderers Dhaka First Division League: 1950, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956 Pakistan Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament runner-up: 1955

Manager Dhaka Wanderers Dhaka First Division League: 1960

Abahani Krira Chakra Dhaka First Division League: 1981 Federation Cup: 1982

Awards and accolades 1980 − National Sports Awards 1982 − Sports Writers Association's Best Football Coach Award