KARACHI: Pakistan’s FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival debut in Azerbaijan began with a dream and ended in a nightmare on Saturday, as the Shaheens squandered a two-goal lead and fell 4-2 to Gambia.

Early on, Pakistan were the story of the tournament. Ameer Hamza opened the scoring in the fifth minute, collecting the ball on the right near the halfway line, driving at the Gambian defence and unleashing a fierce strike past the goalkeeper. It was the competition’s opening goal.

Hamza was involved again moments later, winning a tackle that sent the ball towards Baxi Hamal Khan. Driving forward from the left, Baxi fired a superb shot into the top corner, leaving the goalkeeper with no chance. Pakistan, 2-0 up on their World Cup debut, looked unstoppable.

Then it fell apart.

Gambia pulled a goal back before half-time, setting the stage for a tense second period. The African side equalised early after the restart when the ball slipped past Pakistan goalkeeper Shayan.

Gambia pressed relentlessly, forcing Pakistan to defend deep. The Shaheens gradually found their composure, with Kaleemullah testing the Gambian goalkeeper on more than three occasions and forcing a series of saves.

But just as Pakistan looked to regain their footing, a swift counter-attack saw the ball fall to a Gambian player, whose ferocious left-footed strike rifled into the corner of the net to put his side ahead. Gambia added a fourth with a curling effort into the top corner, completing a dramatic turnaround.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2026