Mehtab Hussain, Mahesh Gawli and Climax Lawrence pat N.S. Manju after the latter scored the winner against Maldives in the semis

Karachi: Three-time winners India will have a tough task against a relaxed and confident Bangladesh ? who are the defending champions ? in the final of the SAFF Cup football championship at the floodlit Peoples Football Stadium here on Saturday.

Both the teams are unbeaten in the tournament, while their group match had also ended in a 1-1 draw. Midfielder Climax Lawrence had put the Indians ahead in the 17th minute. Zahid Hasan Ameli equalised 13 minutes from time.

Before the start of the tournament, Indian captain Bhaichung Bhutia had voiced concern about the lack of co-ordination that was clearly evident in the four matches when the Indians could score just six goals.

Bhutia will now be an even more worried man as for Saturday’s final, he would be without the services of midfielder Mehtab Hussain who was red-carded in the semi-final against Maldives.

Hussain is not only India’s lead scorer with two, he is also the fastest scorer of the competition. He achieved the distinction against Nepal when he found the net in the sixth minute.

Nevertheless, Mehrajuddin Wadao is likely to be named in the starting line-up. Wadao returns after missing the semi-final because of a one-match suspension.

Contrary to the Indians, the Bangladeshis will be much more relaxed and confident.

The Bangladeshis have scored seven goals in the tournament but more importantly, their strikers have combined well and have made maximum use of the opportunities.

Ariful Kabir Farhad, Rokonuzzaman Kanchan and Ameli have scored six of the seven goals between them.

To add woes to the worries of the struggling Indian strikers, Bangladesh goalkeeper Aminul Hoque has conceded just one goal in 315 minutes and that too against the Indians in the last league match. (PTI)