Through messages on social media, Hamza Chowdhury got a glimpse of how excited Bangladeshi fans are about to make his debut for the national team.

His cousins, who lived in East Asian countries, had also warned him of the frenzy he would cause if he decided to switch from representing England to the country where his mother and stepfather were born.

But when he and his family arrived at Sylhet Osmani International Airport in the east of the country more than a week ago, they were received in a way he did not expect, where they could stay for a few days and travel to the town of Habiganj, where his family lives.

Bangladesh may be best known for cricket, not its national football team – ranked 211th out of 0 in the FIFA world rankings – but there is a lot of enthusiasm for the sport, and Argentina (number one in the world) is embraced by the people of Bangladesh through the exploits of Diego Maradona and later Lionel Messi.

Even the two greats will be impressed by the reception Chaudhry, who was born in Loughborough, Leicestershire, in the heart of England and joined the Leicester City Academy at the age of 7.

The 27-year-old was besieged by fans and media as he left the airport, with a team of vehicles honking their horns in celebration and following his car. Fans stood on both sides of the street, waving posters and flags, and Chowdhury stood in the sunroof of his vehicle waving to them.

On the eve of the Asian Cup qualifiers against India, Chowdhury was interviewed by The Athletic at the team's hotel in Shillong, India, where he described the whole experience as "surreal".

"The trip was fantastic," said Chowdhury, who came to the country with a large group of family. He was accompanied by his wife Olivia, their three children, his mother Rafia, his stepfather Morcheid, his two brothers, an aunt and a cousin.

"It's crazy. My dad often goes back to Bangladesh and he told me that they were very much looking forward to my coming, but I didn't expect half of what would happen.

"When I arrived at the airport, I didn't expect so many people and it was clear that they were all following me by car and motorcycle.

"I'm not used to these things, and I've never experienced them."

(Image source: oliviachoudhury_)

This also applies to his family, even those who are familiar with Bangladeshi culture and especially Olivia and his children, who have embraced the experience. The whole family has been staying in the hotel, which is five minutes away from the team hotel.

"They love it," he said. "My immediate family, they've never experienced this side, but I think they know how to deal with different cultures, but my wife, my kids, it's all new and they love it.

"Everything is positive. I'm not worried about the safety of my kids or my wife, she really likes it here and everyone loves her. ”

Chowdhury has spent time on loan at Championship club Sheffield United, but is the first Premier League club player to play for Bangladesh due to his contract with Leicester. Unable to move an inch upon arriving in the country, he was besieged by a group of football fans who saw him as their best hope for success.

"In Bangladesh, it's impossible to (move around)," he said. "It was hard to get out of the elevator.

"It surprised me. I talked to everybody and they all said they liked football more, but they were more successful in cricket and cricket became the national sport.

"But my experience is that talking to people about football is the main sport they watch.

'They watch a lot of Premier League football and any football game they can see and I'm amazed at how popular it is.

"Even now, in India, we are in Shillong, which is a fairly remote area, but there are a lot of fans on the streets. It's new to come to this part of the world and people recognize me and come and talk about things like the Premier League.

"It was very surprising to me."

He was also amazed by the level of football and facilities that Chowdhury encountered. He trained with the team for the first time in Dhaka before heading to India, where the team had been preparing at a training camp in Saudi Arabia.

"The level is really good," he said. 'The coach is from Spain, he has spent a lot of time coaching in Spain and his ideas and stuff didn't surprise me, but the level of possession and tactical philosophy of the team was good and I enjoyed it.

Chowdhury got off to a good start on his debut, with Bangladesh drawing away at the top seeds in their qualifying group, with coach Javier Cabrera saying: "If we can draw here, we can beat any other team in this group." ”

Bangladesh has not beaten India for more than 20 years, but Chowdhury said they were still greeted like heroes when they came close to victory before.

“我和一些小夥子聊天，他們說上次他們比賽時，他們打成了平局，在第90分鐘失球了”他說。

"They were all frustrated, but when they got back to Dhaka, the airport was packed with fans who welcomed them back and congratulated them."

Chowdhury could inspire Bangladesh to move up the FIFA rankings and challenge for qualification for the Asian Cup, and Chowdhury and his new international team-mates could be treated at a higher level than Chowdhury's first homecoming.