Mesmeric Morsalin helps Bangladesh reach SAFF semis after 14 years

Bangladesh have secured their spot in the semifinals of the SAFF Football Championships 2023 after defeating Bhutan 3-1 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bangalore on Wednesday. 

It was the Sheikh Morsalin show in the match as he scored one and assisted one and was heavily involved in all of Bangladesh's three goals.

The performance will please head coach Javier Cabrera as Bangladesh came back once again from going a goal down to come back and score three and played some good football in the process.

The first half was an entertaining affair with four goals and three of them were absolute bangers.

Bhutan opened the scoring after pressing Bangladesh early on with a long-range effort from Tsenda Dorji just outside the D-box in the 12th minute.

Bangladesh, knowing that even a 1-0 loss would suffice for them to go through to the semis, sat back a bit too deep and paid the price for it.

But that clicked them into gear as Morsalin scored in the 21st minute to bring things back to level pegging.

This was also another long-range effort from the 17-year-old sensation, something that has become a trademark shot of his, as he scored his second goal in as many matches.

Bangladesh continued to enjoy more possession and control of the ball from here as Bhutan became desperate for another goal and left gaping spaces in defense.

That allowed Morsalin to continue marauding down the left half-spaces and he used his pace, control and vision to put almost an inch-perfect cross for Rakib Hossain.

Rakib tried to control the ball and it ended up ricocheting off the defender Phuntsho Jigme for an own goal in the 30th minute.

Things got even better for Jamal Bhuyan and his men as Morsalin and Rakib once again combined to put Bangladesh 3-1 up in the 36th minute.

This was Morsalin showing his skill and vision to find a through ball for Rakib, but then Rakib had to control it and almost overran with the ball only to find the back of the net from the acutest of angles from the right and beat the keeper with a top finish.

The second half was largely a game of attrition under hot and humid conditions as Bangladesh looked to keep the lead and break the tempo of Bhutan whenever possible. 

Even though Bhutan had more possession and field tilt in the second half, they barely created any cut-throat chances and keeper Anisur Rahman Zico was largely unperturbed. 

One area of concern for Bangladesh will be the injury to midfielder Sohel Rana in the second half as he was subbed off on a stretcher and that puts his participation for the rest of the tournament in doubt. 

It's certainly not ideal for Bangladesh as they had defender Tariq Kazi missing out with a reported ankle injury and it remains to be seen if he will be fit for the next match. 

Bangladesh will now face Kuwait in the semifinal at the same stadium at 3:30 pm on Saturday, 1 July.