Girls up against improved Bhutan
Bangladesh will be looking to maintain their group stage performance when the holders take on hosts Bhutan in the semifinals of the SAFF U-15 Women's Championship at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu today.
The match will get underway at 7:00pm (BST) after India take on Nepal in the first semifinal at the same venue.
The girls in red and green stormed into the semifinals with wins over Pakistan and Nepal in the group stage, finding the back of the net 17 times and sending a strong message that they were once again the team to beat in the second edition of the regional football championship.
The defending champions are now up against an improving Bhutan, who impressed with their organised performances which culminated in the hosts recording their first-ever win at this level with a 6-0 demolition of Sri Lanka before a narrow 1-0 defeat to India in their group stage matches.
Both results were evidence of Bhutan's improvement. The Bhutanese girls were beaten 15-0 by Bangladesh in the now-defunct AFC U-14 Girls Regional (South and Central) Championships in 2015, but the Himalayan nation groomed their girls over the following two years and were on the receiving end of a relatively tame 3-0 loss to Bangladesh in the inaugural SAFF U-15 Women's Championship in December 2017.
Seven months on, Bhutan are considered good opponents for Bangladesh in the last four-battle, especially in front of a home crowd and in a familiar environment.
However, Bangladesh are not really worried by Bhutan's improvement. Instead they just want to play with their utmost effort to ensure a final berth.
"We have achieved our preliminary target by confirming the semifinal berth. Now we are one win away from the final. The target in the semifinal is to put up our natural show like we did in the two group matches. The girls will take the field for the victory and give hundred per cent effort to win the match against Bhutan," said head coach Golam Rabanni Choton over the phone before conducting his final training session yesterday.
Bangladesh asserted their authority and dominated Pakistan and Nepal in the group matches with everyone from forwards to defenders on the scoresheet, but Nepal gave them a hard time and nearly held their opponents until half time.
Bhutan, considered a better side than Nepal, can also give their superior opponents a run for their money by taking advantage of their physical condition, the backing of the home crowd and familiar weather.
"Yes, Bhutan came to the semifinal with good performances. They are now a better side than they were seven months ago. But you have to remember that Bangladesh have also improved over the past seven months. So we are not thinking much of Bhutan; rather we want to play our own game," said Choton, adding that although Bhutan had the home advantage, his girls were habituated to playing in such environments.
The Bangladesh backline and goalkeeper were hardly tested in the group matches as brilliant midfielders Maria Manda and Monica Chakma pulled the strings from the middle, providing the final passes and breaking up opposition attacks to reduce pressure on the defence.
However, it is uncertain whether Monica can take the field against Bhutan after picking up a thigh injury in the match against Nepal although Choton is optimistic about her chances.