Defending champions Bangladesh smartly reached the final of the six-nation South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Men's U-19 Championship with an unbeaten run, beating Nepal by 2-1 goal in the first semifinal at the Golden Jubilee Stadium, Yupia, in the Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh, Friday afternoon.
Bangladesh will play the final on Sunday (May 18) against the winners of hosts India and the Maldives, who will face each other in the 2nd semifinal Friday (May 16) evening at the same venue.
Bangladesh failed to display their usual shot in the barren first half and all three goals were scored in the competitive 2nd half.
Nazmul Huda Faysal scored one goal and assisted in the day's another goal.
Ashiqur Rahman scored first for Bangladesh in the 74th minute by a brilliant header from handshake distance, utilizing a corner kick off captain Nazmul Huda Faysal (1-0)
Nazmul Huda Faysal doubled the Bangladesh margin in the 81st minute by a cool shot from the danger zone, utilizing a readymade pass from Manik (2-0)
In the last few minutes, Nepal regained their rhythm and made some good attempts towards Bangladesh and took its fruit in the 87th minute when their Sujan Dongal found the net by a cool shot from top of the small box (2-1).
Earlier, Bangladesh emerged Group A champions to reach the semifinal as an unbeaten team, securing four points from two group matches, beating Bhutan by 3-0 goals after making a 2-2 draw with the Maldives in the opener.
MSH
