Two years ago, Faisal Ahmed Fahim came off the bench to make his international debut against Maldives during the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Tournament in Sri Lanka. The young forward chose the same opposition to score his first international goal yesterday, a goal which helped Bangladesh clinch a spot in the World Cup Qualifiers.

Fahim, who has taken 15 matches to get his name on the scoresheet, had scored many for age-group national teams. The youngster was heavily criticised for squandering a couple of chances in the away match in Male where Bangladesh had played out a 1-1 draw against Maldives last week.

Apart from Rakib Hossain, the focus was on Fahim in Tuesday's home match and the 22-year-old forward responded with a spritely performance. The lad from Sirajganj provided a brilliant cut-back for Rakib for an 11th-minute lead and then saw his miscued header leading to the equaliser for Maldives in 36th minute. The youngster then took matters into his own hands and scored the decisive goal in the first minute of the second half.

"My confidence went down after missing chances in the away match against Maldives. However, the teammates, the coach and my family members kept inspiring me to look forward and get ready for the home match for goals," Fahim told The Daily Star over phone after reaching Sirajganj last evening following an overnight victory celebration at the team hotel.

"I usually don't miss such opportunities. I had the belief that something good was waiting for me. Before the match, Rakib inspired me by saying that I would get a goal today. I also inspired him. My confidence grew when I assisted Rakib for the first goal. Everyone worked really hard for this victory," said the former Saif SC forward, who started in four of the 15 matches he has played so far.

Fahim had previously started against Lebanon and Maldives during the SAFF Championship earlier this year and squandered a couple of chances there too, losing his position to Sheikh Morsalin. The suspension of Morsalin by Bashundhara Kings, though, allowed Fahim another chance in the starting eleven.

"I lacked confidence after missing the chances against Lebanon but the coach kept his faith on me during the Asian Games as well as the matches against Maldives. Now my confidence level is high and I am determined to seal my place," said Fahim.

"My strong point is running with the ball, but I have to do better in finishing and assisting other forwards," Fahim said. "I have a good understanding with Rakib as we discuss a lot before each match. I believe Rakib and I can be a good striking pair to eradicate the goal-scoring problem for our team."

Fahim also urged fans to keep faith on the team so that they get more motivation to do better in future.