SAFF Championship
Bangladesh football team reaches Maldives; to play Sri Lanka in opening match
A 34-member Bangladesh national football team reached the Maldives Tuesday evening at 7:50 pm (Bangladesh time) to participate in the five-nation SAFF Championship' 2021 beginning on Friday (October 1) at the national football stadium in Male.
The Bangladesh team comprises 23 booters and 11 officials.
In the five-nation South Asian regional football, Bangladesh will play Sri Lanka in the opening match on Friday (October 1) at 5 pm (Bangladesh Time) at the national football stadium in Male.
In the remaining matches, Bangladesh will play India on Oct 4 at 5 pm , hosts Maldives on Oct 7 at 10 pm and Nepal on Oct 13 at 5pm , all at the National Stadium in Male.
The difference of the Maldives and Bangladesh time is one hour where Maldives is one hour ahead of the Bangladesh.
Read: SAFF football: Bangladesh leave for Maldives fancying their chances under Bruzon
Soon after reaching the Maldives Tuesday evening, all the players of Bangladesh team had their Covid-19 Test and all were found negative.
All the members of Bangladesh team are in sound health and staying at Hotel Jen in Male. Local weather is also comfortable between 28 to 30 degree celsius.
The Bangladesh team is scheduled to make their first practice session at the Henveiru Training pitch in Male today (Wednesday) afternoon, said a BFF media release on Wednesday.
It will be the first assignment for the newly appointed Spanish interim Head Coach of national football team Oscar Bruzon, a head coach of BPL champions Bashundhara Kings.
Earlier this month, Bangladesh football team, toured Kyrgyzstan to play three matches-- two in the Three Nations Cup and one friendly against Kyrgyz U-23 team as part of their preparation for the SAFF Championship, but lost all the three matches.
Visiting Bangladesh conceded 0-2 goals defeat against Palestine in their first match of the Three Nations Cup.
Hosts Kyrgyzstan clinched three nations cup title with all-win record outplaying Bangladesh by 4-1 goals in their 2nd and match after beating Palestine by 1-0 goal in tournament opener.
Relieved coach Jamie Day's Bangladesh team completed their Kyrgyzstan tour with frustrating note losing all the three matches, after conceding a 2-3 goals defeat against Kyrgyzstan U-23 team, all at the Dolen Omurzakov Stadium in Bishkek.
Members of the Bangladesh football team are:
Shahidul Alam Sohel, Anisur Rahman and Ashraful Islam Rana (Custodian);
Rahmat Miah, Bishwanath Ghosh, Topu Barman, Tariq Raihan Kazi , Riyadul Hasan, Yeasin Arafat, Tutul Hossain Badsha, Rezaul Karim and Mohammad Hridoy (Defender);
Jamal Bhuiyan, Atiqur Rahman Fahad , Sohel Rana, M Saaduddin and Rakib Hossain (Midfield),
Mahbubur Rahman Sufil, Mohammad Ibrahim, Matin Miah ,Jewel Rana, Biplo Ahmed and Sumon Reza (Forward)
SAFF football: Bangladesh leave for Maldives fancying their chances under Bruzon
A 34-member delegation including the playing squad of the Bangladesh national football team left the capital for the Maldives Tuesday (Sept 28)at 3: 50 pm with high hopes of clinching the title in the five-nation SAFF Championship beginning on Friday (October 1) in Male.
Bangladesh team comprises 23 booters and 11 officials.
It will be the first assignment for the newly appointed Spanish interim Head Coach of national football team Oscar Bruzon, a head coach of BPL champions Bashundhara Kings.
In the five-nation South Asian regional football, Bangladesh will play Sri Lanka in the opening match on Friday (October 1) at 5 pm (Bangladesh Time) at the national stadium in the Maldives capital Male.
In the remaining matches, Bangladesh will play India on Sept 4 at 5: pm , hosts Maldives on Sept 7 at 10 pm and Nepal on Sept 13 at 5:pm , all at the National Stadium in Male
Earlier on Monday (Sept 27) night, the interim head coach of Bangladesh national team Oscar Bruzon announced a 23-member final Bangladesh squad for the SAFF Championship to be held in Maldives from October 1-16 .
READ: Bangladesh team to leave for Maldives Tuesday in hunt for SAFF title
Four players of the preliminary squad,-- Nigerian born fresh Bangladesh citizen Eleta Kingsley, medio Manik Hossain Mollah, defenders Mohammad Atikuzzaman and Mehedi Hasan-- were dropped from the final squad.
In a pre tour press conference at BFF office on Monday, both the Bangladesh interim head coach Oscar Bruzon and team captain Jamal Bhuiyan expressed their high hope of clinching the SAFF title this time, despite the Bangladesh failed to overcome the group stages in the last four meets.
Addressing the pressmen Bangladesh captain said, "we are playing together for long, we have a good understanding, we worked hard in last few days, now we are confident and our players are committed do something giving our best to achieve the target"
Replying to a question, Jamal Bhuiyan said, as per current FIFA ranking , India is the favourite, but we treat all the opponents equally , now our first target is to beat Sri Lanka.
Bangladesh coach Oscar Bruzon is also optimistic to make his first assignment memorable by clinching the title.
Earlier this month, Bangladesh football team, toured Kyrgyzstan to play three matches-- two in the Three Nations Cup and one friendly against Kyrgyz U-23 team as part of their preparation for the SAFF Championship, but lost all the three matches.
READ: Women's Football: Sabina scores hat-trick as Bangladesh crush Hong Kong 5-0
Visiting Bangladesh conceded 0-2 goals defeat against Palestine in their first match of the Three Nations Cup.
Hosts Kyrgyzstan clinched three nations cup title with all-win record outplaying Bangladesh by 4-1 goals in their 2nd and match after beating Palestine by 1-0 goal in tournament opener.
Jamie Day's Bangladesh team completed their Kyrgyzstan tour with frustrating note losing all the three matches, after conceding a 2-3 goals defeat against Kyrgyzstan U-23 team, all at the Dolen Omurzakov Stadium in Bishkek.
Members of Bangladesh squad (footballers) are:
Shahidul Alam Sohel, Anisur Rahman and Ashraful Islam Rana (Custodians);
Rahmat Miah, Bishwanath Ghosh, Topu Barman, Tariq Raihan Kazi , Riyadul Hasan, Yeasin Arafat, Tutul Hossain Badsha, Rezaul Karim and Mohammad Hridoy (Defenders);
Jamal Bhuiyan, Atiqur Rahman Fahad , Sohel Rana, M Saaduddin and Rakib Hossain (Midfield),
Mahbubur Rahman Sufil, Mohammad Ibrahim, Matin Miah ,Jewel Rana, Biplo Ahmed and Sumon Reza (Forwards).
2021 SAFF Championship: Bangladesh Seek First Title Since 2003
The Maldives will host the 13th edition of the SAFF football championship from October 1 to 16. This is the most prestigious football tournament in the South Asian region. So, there is a lot of interest in this tournament among football lovers in this territory. The defending champion is the Maldives, while India have the most trophies (7) in the competition's history. Bangladesh have only one SAAF Championship, which they won in 2003. Bangladesh have a good enough squad to make it to the final. They will compete for their second championship. Let's look at some facts about the 2021 SAFF Championship.
Why was the SAFF Championship Postponed for a Year?
The tournament was scheduled to take place in Pakistan in December 2020. However, the competition had to be postponed due to the outbreak of coronavirus. The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) postponed the tournament for another year, and Bangladesh was selected to host the event in September 2021.
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Following Bangladesh's withdrawal, Nepal expressed interest in hosting the event. However, the Maldives later emerged as a contender to host the 2021 SAAF Championship. The SAAF committee eventually agreed to award the hosting rights to the Maldives in August.
The SAAF Football Championship will be held for the second time in the Maldives. In 2008, they co-hosted the event with Sri Lanka for the first time.
Pakistan would not be eligible to compete in this year's SAAF Championship because they were sanctioned by FIFA in April 2021. Bhutan will also be absent from the tournament due to the government's refusal to allow the national football squad to travel outside of the country.
Read: Bangladesh Women's Football Team to Play 2022 Asian Cup Qualifiers in September
The host Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, India, and Bangladesh are among the teams competing in the 13th edition of the SAAF Football Championship.
2021 SAFF Championship: Format and Fixtures
There is just one group in the 2021 SAFF Championship. To put it another way, all five teams competing will face off against one another. The top two teams in the points table will qualify for the championship match. All of the games will be held at Malé's National Football Stadium.
Aside from India, only the Maldives have won the SAAF Football Championship more than once. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan have each won one tournament. In addition to being a one-time champion, Bangladesh have finished second twice in the SAAF Football Championship.
Read: AFC Cup: Bashundhara Kings take solo lead in goalless draw with Bengaluru FC
Bangladesh will play Sri Lanka in their first match of the tournament on October 1. Bangladesh's chances to stay strong in the competition will be determined by their performance in the first encounter.
Here is the tournament's complete schedule
Date
Matches
01/10/2021
Nepal vs. Maldives
01/10/2021
Sri Lanka vs. Bangladesh
04/10/2021
Bangladesh vs. India
04/10/2021
Sri Lanka vs. Nepal
07/10/2021
India vs. Sri Lanka
07/10/2021
Maldives vs. Bangladesh
10/10/2021
Maldives vs. Sri Lanka
10/10/2021
Nepal vs. India
13/10/2021
Bangladesh vs. Nepal
13/10/2021
India vs. Maldives
16/10/2021
Final
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021_SAFF_Championship#Matches
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Bottom Line
Bangladesh's chances of winning the championship for the second time depend on their ambition and performance throughout the competition. Bangladesh have a realistic opportunity to win the 2021 SAFF Championship if they can exhibit consistency from the start of the event.
The SAFF Football Championship will go ahead after overcoming all of the obstacles posed by the pandemic coronavirus. The tournament committee will closely observe health regulations. However, spectators may or may not be allowed into the stadium depending on the condition of the covid-19 situation in the Maldives.
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