SAFF U17 Championship 2024 Final: India vs Bangladesh Live

The trip to Bhutan brings the Indian U17 men’s team full circle. Not once, but twice. The Blue Colts will face Bangladesh in the final of the SAFF U17 Championship 2024 at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu, Bhutan on Monday, September 30, 2024 at 5:30 pm IST. The game will be broadcast live on the Sportzworkz YouTube channel.

SAFF U17: India vs Bangladesh

India began their tournament nine days ago with a last-gasp 1-0 win over Bangladesh in the group stage. The same scenario happened last year too when India U16 boys defeated their eastern neighbors 1-0 in the first game and 2-0 in the final. Ishfaq Ahmed and his boys are hoping for a repeat performance on Monday to successfully defend their title.

To recall, India and Bangladesh have met in the final of the SAFF men’s age group tournaments four times, with India winning three times (U18 in 2019, U20 in 2022 and U16 in 2023) and Bangladesh winning once (U16 in 2015).

“We know Bangladesh have a good team. They did well to come back from a deficit in the semi-final. They had some problems but were more stable compared to the other teams. Our victory against them is in the past. “A final is a different game,” Ahmed said in the pre-match press conference.

“In any SAFF tournament, India is always under pressure as favorites. We have to repeat our success again and again. If we want to perform well, consistency is important. I emphasize this to my boys. We are here to achieve again what we achieved last year,” the former India international added.

India captain and midfielder Ngamgouhou Mate said: “Bangladesh are one of the best teams in this tournament. But we are here with the mission to win the cup and play good football.”

India beat Nepal 4-2 on Saturday in a frenetic semi-final in which four goals were scored in the final 10 minutes. Vishal Yadav’s brace in the second half put India under control but Nepal did not go down so easily as they continued to reduce the Blue Colts’ lead. In the end, goals from substitutes Ningthoukhongjam Rishi Singh and Hemneichung Lunkim secured India’s victory.

“It got a bit tight towards the end. We should have made sure to finish the game beforehand. But that’s how football is sometimes. They miss opportunities and the opponent scores with the first one they get. But I’m happy that we managed to control the game towards the end and also score the fourth goal,” said Ahmed.

India have been excellent at set pieces so far. So far they have scored four goals from dead balls and Ahmed was delighted with that.

“We have worked a lot on our standards. We also scored a goal against Indonesia from a corner. We have big bodies and we try to use that to our advantage. “I’m happy with the boys’ performance, whether it’s from set pieces or crosses,” he said.

In the second semi-final, Bangladesh showed indomitable courage as they came from two goals down to level 2-2 against Pakistan thanks to Md Manik’s goals in the 74th and 94th minutes. They then converted all eight penalties, capped a memorable comeback and reached the final.

“I am proud of my boys’ performance. This gives us great confidence,” said Bangladesh head coach Saiful Bari Titu.

“India are the defending champions and undoubtedly the favorites. You have a technical and decision-making advantage. I think we did quite well in the first game against India but conceded a goal in stoppage time. We have to do our best and I think we are capable of it. Finals are for winning titles. We can’t be happy just getting to the final. Our goal is to win the cup,” he added.

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