As Lionel Messi and his Argentina team amble back into the daily drudgery of club football they leave behind in their wake an adoring crowd of Bangladeshi supporters hopeful for another visit of football’s most famous star. If Messi had even had half an ear open during most of the game on Tuesday, he would ... Read more
Argentina-Nigeria match in Dhaka
It’s just the beginning?
After the successful completion of the Argentina-Nigeria match in Dhaka, Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) has now sets its sights on bringing English Premier League champions Manchester United and Diego Maradona’s Al Wasl FC of UAE to the city next year. “If I am elected again in next year’s election, then I will try to bring ... Read more
Messi, Mikel bid bye
Nazia of Banani could not believe her own eyes as she met Lionel Messi in person on Tuesday night at the Ruposhi Bangla hotel’s lobby. The Argentina captain, who is usually very shy, was in jovial and friendly mood after he guided his side to victory over Nigeria. Some twenty to twenty-five fans, mostly young, ... Read more
Messi rocks big bowl
Lionel Messi dazzled in an otherwise under-whelming Argentina performance which still proved enough to negotiate an ultimately comfortable 3-1 victory over Nigeria in their international friendly match held at the Bangabandhu National Stadium (BNS) in Dhaka yesterday. Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain claimed two of the goals, at least one of which was
Messi says…
“Se grande problemo.” Lionel Messi uttered the phrase on way to his room after having lunch on the ground floor at the Ruposhi Bangla Hotel yesterday as the enthusiastic fans, photographers and cameramen gathered to capture his photo whenever he is seen in the lobby. The sensational Messi’s conversation with his teammates was interpreted by ... Read more
Messi! Messi!! Messi!!!
Fans, players and organisers alike were awestruck by the sight of the inimitableLionel Messi as the two-time world player of the year set foot on Bangladeshi soil with his Argentina team on Monday. The magical marksman was received with more than a dozen garlands at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport as he made his way ... Read more
“Messi, Messi”
Lionel Messi put the ball down patiently, before taking three marked steps back. He wiped his brow and eyed the mass of players lined up jostling for position inside the penalty area a few yards away. He took a deep breath and around him, the ten thousand strong crowd at the Bangabandhu National Stadium all ... Read more
Messi mania grips Dhaka
The look of pure unadulterated joy in Mirza Ahmad’s face said it all. “Can I hug you? Can I?” he asked repeatedly to the beefy Argentinean team member who had kindly volunteered to reward Mirza’s vigil by getting superstar Lionel Messi to sign Mirza’s Argentina shirt. Mirza was the highlight of the fifty odd brave ... Read more
Messi in Dhaka
The Argentina national football team arrived in Dhaka Monday morning ahead of their international friendly against Super Eagle Nigeria scheduled for Tuesday. Led by superstar Lionel Messi, the Argentina team landed at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 11:00am, amid tight security
Match sure, all else up in the air
A lack of a decisive decision from the Celebrity Management Group (CMG), the Kolkata-based event management firm that is brokering the Argentina friendly match in Bangladesh is threatening to put the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) in a real mess. “At the moment the only thing that I can say is that the match between Argentina ... Read more
Messi still amiss
With only a week left for the scheduled FIFA friendly between Argentina and Nigeria in Dhaka, the football authorities here made little progress till yesterday in terms of the schedule of the two visiting high-profile teams. The Argentina team are expected to arrive here on September 3 while the Nigerians are scheduled to arrive two ... Read more
Sakib can’t wait for Messi
While the entire country is gripped by the Lionel Messi fever with the arrival time of the Argentine superstar looming close, national cricket captain Sakib al Hasan is also not an exception. Sakib, currently Bangladesh’s biggest sporting icon, is a keen follower of Messi, so much so that he even recently switched his support to ... Read more
BFF ball-boys cherish the special occassion
Abu Bakar Siddique never thought he will get an opportunity to see Lionel Messi from so close let alone being involved in a game played by the Argentine superstar in some capacity. But his dream is all set to come true as Bakar, 14, is one of the 16 young footballers selected to work as ... Read more
Many issues still brewing
Argentina-Nigeria Friendly Many issues still brewing The Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel yesterday officially asked the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) to not accommodate the Argentina national football team at their premises due to security issues that have arisen for the stay of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the same time. The Special Security Force of ... Read more
National footballers to welcome Messi & Co
Bangladesh national team players will receive the Argentina and Nigeria teams at the airport when they arrive in Dhaka next month for an international friendly, the Bangladesh Football Federation said on Saturday. The BFF has drawn up a detailed plan to welcome the high-profile international teams that boast some of the best known footballers, including ... Read more
Messi to lead team in Dhaka
Want-away Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez was on Friday dropped from the Argentina squad for friendly games against Venezuela and Nigeria by new coach Alejandro Sabella but magical striker Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain and Sergio Aguero have been included in the friendly squads. The former world champions, to be captained by Messi, will play against ... Read more
Arg-Nig tickets on sale
Tickets for the Argentina-Nigeria International friendly match scheduled for September 6 went on sale yesterday at eight branches of IFIC Bank in the capital yesterday. However the sale of tickets did not gather much pace on the opening day as around 250 tickets of the allotted 11000 were sold. Those tickets were of both the ... Read more
Dhaka ready to welcome soccer giants Argentina and Nigeria
Dhaka is all set to welcome the titans of world soccer, the Argentinean and Nigerian national football teams, for the FIFA friendly international match to be staged on September 6, at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka. Organised by the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF), the match was titled ‘Beximco Football Fest’, as the country’s biggest corporate ... Read more
Deal is done to land Argentina
Bangladesh Football Federation finally signed a contract with the Celebrity Management Group (CMG) on Saturday which confirms Bangladesh as the hosts of Argentina’s friendly match against Nigeria scheduled for September 6. CMG, an Indian event management group, is the rights holder of the two matches Argentina
Argentina-Nigeria match in Dhaka?
The dream of watching football superstars like Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain and John Obi Mikel is close to becoming a reality for the millions of football fans in Bangladesh. Argentina and Nigeria, two of the powerhouses of international football, are expected to play an exhibition match in Bangladesh in September this