Sports
SAFF Championship Bangladesh's final dreams shattered by extra-time goal
Dhaka, July 1: Many will remember goalkeeper Anisur Rahman Ziko's heroics in taking a strong team like Kuwait to extra time. His incredible saves brought Bangladesh back to life again and again. But the ending wasn't a happy one.
In the first 15 minutes of extra time, Kuwait beat Bangladesh's goalkeeper for the first time before the whistle. Abdullah Al Balushi's goal led to the away team of Safar. Keeping that goal for the rest of the time, Kuwait broke Bangladesh's dream by winning the semi-final with a margin of 1-0 and advanced to the final of the SAFF Championship.
In the group stage, Kuwait proved their mettle with a last-minute goal against India. Bangladesh also knew they had to shine differently to beat Kuwait to reach the final. Everyone had a promise - I will not lose before the match, I will bet my life and play. Jamal's team played the same way.
Extra time goal eliminated Bangladesh from the semi-finals. There is pain in this goodbye. But there is no sadness. Bangladesh put up a great fight against strong opponents Kuwait and lost. And if you can hold the match for 15 minutes, you can take it to the tiebreaker. Anything could happen then.
Kuwait won the match with a goal with 15 minutes remaining. And Bangladesh could have scored in the second minute of the match. If Morsalin had not missed an easy chance, the young footballer might have been riding on everyone's shoulders at the end of the match. But there are things in football that bring regret to one group, relief to another. Otherwise, why would Morsalin, who had scored great goals in the previous two matches, hit the ball like that even if he got the goalkeeper alone.
After the inclusion of Lebanon and Kuwait, this time it became very difficult for Bangladesh. That's why coach Javier Cabrera targeted the semi-finals first.
However, the football that Bangladesh played in the group stage, many dreamed that the team would play in the final. Jamal Bhuiyan was also confident. Bangladesh could not finally step on the final stage again after 18 years. However, the performance of Jamal Bhuiyan in this year's SAFF Championship will reduce the disappointment of football fans to some extent.
