DHAKA (The Thursday Times) — Pakistan hafte ke roz pehli baar SAFF Championship ke final mein pohanch gaya, jab us ne Dhaka ke National Stadium mein semi-final mein mezban Bangladesh ko 1-0 se shikast di.
Denmark mein khelne wale forward Abdul Samad Arshad ne goal ke baghair pehle half ke baad 86wein minute mein faisla kun goal kiya.
Pakistan mangal 17 November ko final mein difai champion India ka muqabla karega. India ne hafte hi ko pehle semi-final mein Bhutan ko 2-1 se haraya tha.
Is jeet se nakamiyon ka ek taweel silsila khatam ho gaya hai. Pakistan is se pehle chaar baar, 1997, 2003, 2005 aur 2018 mein, semi-final tak pohancha aur har baar haar gaya. Bangladesh Dhaka mein Pakistan se kabhi nahin haara tha; wahan pichhle paanch muqablon mein us ne teen jeete aur do barabar rahe, aur 2018 mein dono teamon ke aakhri muqable mein bhi 1-0 se jeeta tha.
Coach Nolberto Solano ki team ka group marhala mila jula raha. Woh India ke khilaf 3-0 se peeche hone ke baad wapsi kar ke 3-2 se haari, phir Maldives ko 3-0 se shikast di.
Beroon-e-mulk khelne wale paanch khilari knockout marhale ke liye squad mein shamil hue, kyunke group match FIFA international window se bahar the: captain Abdullah Iqbal, Easah Suliman, Adil Nabi, Arshad aur Ali Akbar Khan. Iqbal aur Suliman ne difa ko sambhale rakha, jis ne Bangladesh ke taweel dabao ka muqabla kiya.
Sheffield United ke midfielder Hamza Choudhury ki captaincy aur Thomas Dooley ki coaching mein Bangladesh ne Group A mein koi goal khaye baghair pehli position hasil ki thi, aur Bhutan ko 1-0 aur Sri Lanka ko 4-0 se haraya tha. Woh 2005 ke baad pehle final ki talash mein tha.
SAFF Championship mein pehli baar video assistant referee istemal ho raha hai, semi-finals aur final ke liye.
Yeh kamyabi mulk mein mushkil barson ke bawajood mili hai. Pakistan mein 2018-19 ke season ke baad se koi top division domestic league nahin hui, aur 2017 se FIFA ise kai baar muattal kar chuka hai, aakhri muattali March 2025 mein khatam hui.
Yeh Pakistani footballers ke liye ek achhe din ka ikhtitam bhi hai. Hafte hi ko under-17 team ne mezban Laos ko 3-0 se hara kar AFC Under-17 Asian Cup ki daud mein apni jagah barqarar rakhi.
