Bangladesh’s domestic competitions are not producing forwards who steal the spotlight in big matches. Goals in lopsided fixtures, played in front of empty stands, do little to prepare players for the intensity of international football.
After leading Bashundhara Kings to Federation Cup title defence as captain, central defender -- even becoming the joint-top scorer -- Tapu Barman was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
In the highly anticipated match at Shaheed Dhirendranath Datta Stadium, neither Kings nor Abahani could create any clear-cut chances in the first half, but the holders headed to the interval with an extra-man advantage.
Brothers last made it to the semifinals in 2005 when they won their third Federation Cup title.
Last season’s runners-up Mohammedan stumbled to a 1-0 defeat against Rahmatganj MFS in Dhaka, while 12-time champions Abahani showcased their dominance in a commanding 3-0 victory over Chittagong Abahani in Cumilla.
Mohammedan Sporting Club finished the season as runners-up in the Bangladesh Premier League for the first time in 14 years after finishing runners-up in two club competitions. Alfaz Ahmed, the man behind the resurgence of the Motijheel outfit, spoke with The Daily Star's Anisur Rahman about the process of rebuilding Mohammedan and many other aspects.
Jahid first-ever goal in top flight became a memorable one.
Bashundhara Kings and their loyal band of travelling fans were ecstatic at the Rafique Uddin Bhuiyan Stadium in Mymensingh yesterday as the club added the Federation Cup to the Independence Cup and the Bangladesh Premier League following a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Mohammedan Sporting Club.
Favourites Bashundhara Kings will look to add a new feather to their burgeoning cap when they take on defending champions Mohammedan in the final of the Federation Cup at the Rafique Uddin Bhuiyan Stadium in Mymensingh today.
Bashundhara Kings midfielder Sheikh Morsalin perhaps felt hard done by after missing out on the preliminary 35-member Bangladesh squad for the upcoming SAFF Championship but the 19-year-old got a surprise call-up to the 30-member squad just ahead of the training camp as players reported to the team management on Sunday.
After playing domestic football for 25 years before calling time on his career in 2013, Alfaz Ahmed remains one of the most recognisable names in Bangladesh football. The former national forward has returned to the spotlight after masterminding Mohammedan's epic triumph against archrivals Abahani in the Federation Cup final on Tuesday. The 49-year-old, who has been with Mohammedan for three seasons, spoke to The Daily Star's Anisur Rahman about the final and other topics. The excerpts are below:
Captain Souleymane Diabate engineered an extraordinary fightback as Mohammedan beat archrivals Abahani 4-2 on penalties following a 4-4 draw in regular and extra time during a topsy-turvy Federation Cup final in Cumilla yesterday to clinch their first title in nine years.
Soon after the presentation ceremony was over following the pulsating Federation Cup final in Cumilla yesterday, Mohammedan captain Souleymane Diabate ran up the stairs with two trophies in his hands --one for the top-scorer and another for the player of the tournament -- and a crest for becoming the most valuable player of the final. He walked into the dressing room, where the Mohammedan players were revelling following a pulsating win over arch-rivals Abahani.
Having beaten arch-rivals and defending champions Abahani 4-2 in a penalty shootout in the pulsating Federation Cup final in Cumilla on Tuesday, Mohammedan Sporting Club head coach Alfaz Ahmed praised his charges for putting up their utmost effort to win the first Federation Cup trophy in 14 years.
This is the first Federation Cup final between the two traditional powerhouses of the country's football in 14 years, and the first final appearance for Mohammedan in any tournament in nine years. Hence there is a lot of excitement among fans of both clubs with an expectation of a memorable final
For over a decade, numerous clashes between Mohammedan and Abahani, which once attracted thousands and brought out the best of a fierce rivalry, have been held almost silently in front of nearly deserted stands. But today's Federation Cup final between the country's most crowd-pulling outfits has suddenly turned up the heat in the country's football fraternity.
The two sides met later twice in cup finals during the 2009 Super Cup and 2011 Super Cup, with the Black and Whites winning the former and the Sky Blues having the last laugh two years later.
The May 30 final will be the first cup final between the country’s two most popular football clubs in 12 years. The last time these two teams met in a final was in the 2011 Super Cup, where Abahani came out victorious.
Mohammedan Sporting Club stunned Bashundhara Kings 2-1 in the first semifinal to reach the final of the Federation Cup for the first time in 14 years on Tuesday.
