Bangladesh have booked their place in the Tier E final of the inaugural FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival after edging past Gabon 1-0 in the semifinals in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Thursday.
Naimur Rahman Ratul scored the decisive goal in the 14th minute to send Akbar Hossain Ridon's side into the final, where they will face the Central African Republic on Friday.
The young Bangladeshis have enjoyed an impressive run in the Tier E knockout competition after finishing fifth in Group G, bouncing back from a mixed group-stage campaign to move within one victory of a trophy.
Bangladesh began their campaign with a goalless draw against Wales before suffering a 3-1 defeat to Portugal. They subsequently drew 1-1 with Indonesia and lost 2-0 to Burundi before ending the group stage on a winning note with a 3-1 victory over Fiji.
The results placed Bangladesh in Tier E, where they began their knockout campaign with a dramatic victory over Seychelles. After a 1-1 draw in regulation time, Bangladesh won the penalty shootout 4-2 to advance to the round of 16.
They produced another penalty-shootout victory against Singapore, winning 4-3 after the match also ended 1-1.
Bangladesh then delivered their most emphatic performance of the knockout stage, thrashing Montenegro 4-0 in Thursday's quarterfinals. Mohammad Bayezid opened the scoring in the ninth minute, before Pavel Hasan struck twice in the second half, with Shibak Kumar Mali also finding the net.
Ratul's solitary strike against Gabon subsequently secured Bangladesh's passage to the final and kept their title hopes alive.
The final against the Central African Republic will take place at Baku Crystal Hall on Friday, with Bangladesh aiming to cap their historic campaign with silverware.
The tournament, being held for the first time, features 189 FIFA member associations and uses an eight-a-side format, with matches consisting of two 20-minute halves.
It is worth noting that Bangladesh are competing in the Tier E final, one of six performance-tier finals in the festival. The overall FIFA U-15 World Cup title will be decided in the Tier A final.