Bangladesh begin SAFF campaign with win over Bhutan as Morsalin eyes Sri Lanka next

Bangladesh have begun the SAFF Championship 2026 with a win. After beating Bhutan in their first match, Bangladesh now have their eyes on the second match. Bangladesh want a win in that match too, said Bangladesh midfielder Sheikh Morsalin.

Bangladesh will face Sri Lanka in their second and final group match. The Group A match will be played on November 11, starting at 8pm.

Before a training session, 21 Bangladesh players faced the media. Asked whether the home crowd would be challenging, Morsalin said, "In one way, I think it has been good. Many times, when you score too many goals, the body relaxes. So I think from that side it is fine. I mean, we are all still very eager to win. So I think we will win the next match."

Morsalin said that even after winning the first match, the hunger for victory still remains in the team. In his words, a win by a big margin often brings complacency into a team. But that has not happened this time. Everyone in the team is still eager to win. He believes this mindset will help in the next match.

On the presence of many foreign-born players in both teams, the star said, "Nothing like that. What I feel is that everyone in our Bangladesh team will play for the country. So we do not really want to compare our players with theirs. We think they are definitely good, and we believe our team is also very good. So we are very confident that we will win, InshaAllah."

According to Morsalin, it is more important to trust his own team than to think about who is in the opposition. Everyone in the Bangladesh team has come to play for the country. The opposition are certainly a good team, but he believes Bangladesh are a very good team too.

Asked about the latest condition of Tapu Barman, Morsalin said, "I actually cannot say that. The physios are there; it is difficult for me to say that." In other words, he left the matter of Tapu Barman's fitness to the team's physios.

Now Sri Lanka await Bangladesh. The second and final group match will begin at 8pm on November 11. The win against Bhutan has given the team confidence. With that confidence, Bangladesh want a win against Sri Lanka too.