Bangladesh will be looking to wrap up the series in style when they take on Bhutan in their second and final FIFA international friendly match at the Changlimithang Football Stadium in Thimphu today.
The match starts at 6:00pm Bangladesh Standard Time.
A clean sweep over Bhutan would help Javier Cabrera鈥檚 charges improve their FIFA rankings and secure Pot-3 instead of Pot-4 during the third round draw of the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers to be held in December 2024.
Despite playing in high altitude, the visitors took a sixth minute lead in the first match, and they maintained it till the final whistle.
The win also gave Bangladesh their first win since October 17, 2023, when they beat the Maldives 2-1 in the second leg of the preliminary round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers at home.
It was also Bangladesh鈥檚 12th win over Bhutan in their 15th meetings since their first encounter in 1984. Two matches ended in draws, and Bhutan鈥檚 only win came in 2016.
鈥榊ou all know that we are here to play these matches to improve our FIFA rankings. So we want to win the game to get the job done,鈥� Bangladesh team assistant coach Hasan Al-Mamun told the media after Saturday鈥檚 training session in Thimphu.聽
In today鈥檚 match, Bangladesh will miss the services of forward Rakib Hossain, who played a key role in Bangladesh鈥檚 win on Thursday as his cross helped Shekh Morsalin score the lone goal of the match.
Rakib suffered an ankle injury during the stoppage time of the first half and will need a few days to recover.
鈥楬e (Rakib) will not be available for the match, but his injury is not very serious,鈥� said Hasan.
Bangladesh captain Jamal Bhuyan believed that the task against Bhutan was only half done because they had only won the first game. But the midfielder hoped that they would win the second game as well.
鈥榃inning the first match we have completed 50 per cent of our job. So our target is to win the final game and get the job done.鈥�