Bashundhara Kings and Mohammedan Sporting Club set up a final clash in the Independence Cup with victories in their respective semifinals today. 

Defending champions Bashundhara Kings will look to leave their continental miseries behind by booking a final berth in the first tournament of the season when they square off against two-time champions Abahani in the first semifinal of the Independence Cup today.

Bashundhara Kings want to assess what went wrong in their AFC Cup qualifiers campaign, which came to an end on Monday under controversial circumstances, and decide their plan of action to fix their woes in international competitions.

Needing only a single point to progress, the Bangladesh Premier League champions were on the verge of creating a piece of history to enter into the inter-zonal semifinals.

Shrugging off some off-the-field hassles in India, Bashundhara Kings are looking forward to moving into the knockout stage of the AFC Cup for the first time when they take on Odisha FC in their last group match at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar today.

AKM Maruful Haque has been involved in coaching since the second edition of the professional football league in the 2008-9 season, but the country's lone UEFA A licence coach, along with other successful coaches such as Shafiqul Islam Manik, Saiful Bari Titu, and Julfikar Mahmud Mintu, have not been involved with top-fight football for the first time in the professional era due to the influx of foreign coaches. The 54-year-old successful coach, who has 11 titles and six runners-up trophies to his name, spoke to Anisur Rahman of The Daily Star about various aspects of the country's coaches and coaching. The excerpts of the conversation are as follows:

Bashundhara Kings are set to fly to India this morning to final AFC Cup group stage encounter against Odisha FC with the hope of making it to the knockout stage of Asia's second-tier club competition for the first time.

Frustrated by fumbles made by young goalkeeper Mehedi Hasan Srabon, Bashundhara Kings team management have instructed their players not to give back passes to the goalkeeper during matches, confirmed a source within the club.

Defending champions Bashundhara Kings and Mohammedan Sporting Club advanced to the semifinals of the Independence Cup after posting hard-fought victories in the last two quarterfinals at two separate venues yesterday.

In the last-eight encounters, Kings face off Bangladesh Army while Chittagong Abahani and Mohammedan SC lock horns on December 5, two days after Police FC play Rahmatganj MFS and Abahani take on Sheikh Jamal DC.

The Spaniard thanked the full-house crowd for backing Kings throughout the game.

With the win, the Kings also maintained their unbeaten run at the Kings arena in both international and domestic competitions.

One goal apiece from Brazilian duo Miguel Ferreira and Robson Robinho inspired Bashundhara Kings to a 2-1 win over Mohun Bagan Super Giant in their AFC Cup fixture at the Bashundhara Kings Arena on Tuesday.

Hosts Bashundhara Kings are looking forward to moving to the top of the table when they square off against group leaders Mohun Bagan Super Giant in their crucial AFC Cup match at the Bashundhara Kings Arena today.

Forward Sheikh Morsalin has been recalled to the national team as head coach Javier Cabrera disclosed a 30-member preliminary squad for the upcoming World Cup Qualifiers against Australia and Lebanon.

Football season in the country is all set to get underway today with the Independence Cup. The focus, however, will be on the star-studded Bashundhara Kings.

Bashundhara Kings players will hope to shake off the weariness from their hasty arrival to India and put forth a brave show against Mohun Bagan Super Giant in their AFC Cup Group I encounter at the Kalinga Stadium in Odisha today.

Heavyweights Abahani and Bashundhara Kings are set to collide before the final of the upcoming 13th edition of the Independence Cup.

Bashundhara Kings' AFC Cup away match against Mohun Bagan is under threat of cancellation or postponement as the reigning Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) champions could not go to India even two days before the match.

Failure to become a regular in the Bangladesh national team and then Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) clubs snubbing the Bangladesh forward for the upcoming 2023-24 season has left Eleta Kingsley's career hanging in the balance in the country's football.