Bangladesh men’s football team came from behind to hold Lebanon to a 1-1 draw and register their first point on the board in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers at Bashundhara Kings Arena in Dhaka Tuesday (November 21).
Majed Osman gave the visitors the lead in the 67th minute before the men in red and green brought parity through Sheikh Morsalin just five minutes later.
Lebanon (104th) might be 79 places above Bangladesh (183rd) in the latest FIFA rankings but it was the home side who dominated the goalless first half.
However, the tourists fared better after resumption and went ahead capitalizing on a defensive blunder by the Bangladesh backline as attacking midfielder Osman, who came off the bench, was at the right place at the right time.
The lead though lasted just five minutes as young attacker Morsalin equalized from outside the box and brought out the Cristiano Ronaldo celebration.
The 17-year old received the ball, ran towards the opposition goal before unleashing a powerful right-footer that went past the Lebanon goalkeeper and sparked wild celebrations at the stadium.
Morsalin was immediately cautioned by the referee for climbing the fence and celebrating with fans.
Australia currently lead Group I with three points while Lebanon are second with two points having played a game more.
Palestine and Bangladesh have a solitary point each but the former are third with a superior goal difference having played a match less.
The Socceroos and the Palestinians will face other later Tuesday in Kuwait.
The Bengal Tigers had opened their qualifiers campaign with a 7-0 loss away to Australia while Lebanon and Palestine played out a goalless draw on the same day in Sharjah.
After the humbling against Australia, Javier Cabrera made four changes to the side.
Shakil Hossain replaced Hasan Murad at the heart of defence, the suspended defender Saad Uddin made way for Isa Faysal, Morsalin came in for the suspended winger Rakib Hossain while Mohammad Sohel Rana was included in place of midfielder Mojibur Rahman Jony who is serving a ban for red-card offence.
Bangladesh starting XI: Mitul Marma; Bishwanath Ghosh, Shakil Hossain, Tariq Raihan Kazi, Isa Faysal; Sohel Rana, Mohammad Sohel Rana, Jamal Bhuiyan, Mohammad Ridoy, Foysal Ahmed Fahim, Sheikh Morsalin
RESULT
Bangladesh 1 (Morsalin 72) Lebanon 1 (Osman 67)
BDST: 2141 HRS, NOV 21, 2023
MSK
