Bangladesh’s bid for the SAFF Futsal Championship ended in disappointment after a 5–1 defeat to Pakistan at Nonthaburi Hall in Bangkok on Thursday. Even when Pakistan were briefly reduced to four players, Bangladesh could not capitalise, ultimately falling to a comprehensive loss.
By the fifteenth minute, Pakistan were down a player, but Bangladesh failed to make use of the advantage. Within two minutes, Pakistan regained the lead and quickly doubled their advantage. Although Bangladesh pulled one goal back in the second half, it was not enough to prevent the heavy defeat.
After five matches, Bangladesh sit on seven points under coach Saeed Khodarahmi and will face Nepal in their final round-robin match on Saturday.
The Maldives continue to lead the title race, winning all four of their matches to top the table with 12 points, while Pakistan are second with 10 points. The championship will go to the team with the most points at the end of the round-robin stage.
Bangladesh opened the tournament with a 4–4 draw against India and then suffered a 6–1 loss to the Maldives. They recovered to defeat Bhutan 4–1 and Sri Lanka 5–1, climbing to second place before the clash with Pakistan.
The match against Pakistan started aggressively from Bangladesh. In the third minute, Rahbar Wahed Khan beat a defender but struck over the crossbar, and soon after Faisal Hossain’s attempt went wide.
In the fourth minute, Hamza Nusrat’s backheel flick from a corner missed the target, and Rahbar again failed to score with a weak close-range shot. A long-range effort from Zafar Khan was well saved by Bangladesh goalkeeper Zahid Hasan Rabbi.
The game intensified in the final five minutes of the first half when Pakistan were reduced to four players after Akib Faisal committed a serious foul, receiving a red card.
By the seventeenth minute, Pakistan took the lead when Ali Agha ran onto a corner from Hamza and delivered a precise back pass for the goal.
In the tenth minute of the second half, Bangladesh conceded a second goal after a defensive error by Kazi Ibrahim Ahmed, who lost possession in his own circle, allowing Zaid Ullah Khan to finish easily.
Bangladesh scored a consolation goal five minutes before full-time, with Fayed Azam reacting quickly to a short pass from Tajwar bin Kashem and beating the goalkeeper.
Pakistan sealed the victory with three further goals from Salar Ahmed Khan, Zaid, and Ali Agha, ending Bangladesh’s challenge for the SAFF futsal crown.
