Monwar Hossain Nannu (Bengali: মনোয়ার হোসেন নান্নু; 27 August 1948 – 16 February 2008)[1] was a Bangladeshi football player during the 1970s and early 1980s.[2] Initially, he played as an attacking midfielder for Abahani Krira Chakra in the Dhaka League.[2] Following an injury in the mid-1970s, he moved to the central defender position and excelled in that position as well. He was a member of Bangladesh's first national football team.[3]
Career
Early years
In the early sixties while still at school, Nannu practiced at the EPG Press field, and ex-Pakistan national team player Syed Abdur Rashid Chunna who coached EPG Press (now BG Press) let Nannu train with the EPG Press football team, when there were not enough players present. In 1965, Nannu got an opportunity to play for the second string team of Azad Sporting Club in the Third Division. Nannu went on to mature by playing in the Second Division with Tejgaon Friends Union in 1966 and Dilkusha SC in 1967.
Bangladesh's first national team coach, Sheikh Shaheb Ali, selected Nannu for the first Bangladesh national team in 1973.[4] They participated in the Mardeka Cup held in Malaysia, and during the tournament Nannu scored against South Vietnam in a 1–1 draw.[5] The tournament turned out to be his only foreign trip with the national team, as injury ruled him out for the 1975 Merdeka Cup. Nannu quit the national team in 1978, only to return to the squad during the 1980 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers held in Dhaka.[2]
In 1974, he joined Abahani Krira Chakra. It was Sheikh Kamal who persuaded him to join Abahani, after Nannu had a row with his brother Manju at Mohammedan SC. The same year, Nannu won his first Dhaka League title, under Irish coach William Bill Hart. Nannu played a big role in rebuilding Abahani after the dark episode of 1975, the Assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, which also claimed the life of one of the club's founder, Sheikh Kamal. After breaking his leg, Nannu stayed out of the game for two years, returning to football in 1977 and transitioning into the country's best attacking midfielder with Bill Hart's possession based football. He remained at Abahani until 1980, where he won the league title in 1977 and captained the club in 1978.[6]
He is the finest midfielder of Bangladesh. His precision pass could find the gap through three players. He had the ability to attack from defence. He was a master tactician.
In 1978, during a Dhaka Derby, Nannu was captain of Abahani while his brother Manju captained Mohammedan. At the time, the game was the most anticipated sports rivalry in the country. However, the two captains refused to shake hands at the beginning. Officials of both parties were worried about the matter, as a fight would have brought in a storm of criticism, and eventually the brothers were convinced into shaking hands before the game got underway. This incident later became a notable part of the country's football history.[7][8] He ended his career while playing for Rahmatganj MFS in 1983.[2]
Career statistics
International
Scores and results list Bangladesh's goal tally first.
Nannu's younger brother Shamsul Alam Manju was a right-back. They played together at Mohammedan Sporting Club and Rahmatganj MFS.[11][12][13] Nannu was married to Shahana Hossain.[14]
He won the 1974 Bangladesh Sports Writers Association (BSWA) Footballer of the Year prize.[1]
In 1998, Nannu received the National Sports Awards, but he could not claim it himself due to cancer. In the same year, a charity match for his treatment was held in Bangladesh, USA and Canada.[15]
On 16 February 2008, Nannu passed away due to his cancer.[1] In 2008, Sonali Otit Club introduced an award for the football referees and named it "Monwar Hossain Nannu Award".[14]
^উজ্জ্বল মুখ. Kaler Kantho (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 9 December 2023. Retrieved 2022-11-18.
Bibliography
Dulal, Mahmud (2020). খেলার মাঠে মুক্তিযুদ্ধ (transl. Liberation war in the playground) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon. ISBN978-984-8218-31-0.
Alam, Masud (2017). ফুটবলের গল্প ফুটবলারদের গল্প (transl. The story of football the story of footballers) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon. ISBN9789849134688.
Zubaear, Arafat. '১:১ বেশি উপভোগ করতাম'. Dhaka Post (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 2023-05-06. Retrieved 2023-05-02.
Shams, Sayeed Ibna (2 June 2020). আবাহনী; দেশের ফুটবলের এক অনন্য নাম. OffsideBangladesh (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
