Sazzad Hossain

Sazzad Hossain (সাজ্জাদ হোসেন; born 18 Jan 1995) is a Bangladeshi professional footballer who plays as a forward or as a right winger for Bangladesh Premier League club Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi and the Bangladesh national team.

Early years
Sazzad started his football career by signing a contract worth Tk 10,000 for Patiya Upazila of Chittagong. During his time in Chittagong, Sazzad played for Patiya Brothers Union and regularly practiced at the Brothers Union field, where the late Mahibullah Chowdhury, president of Patiya Brothers Union saw Sazzad's talent and gave him a chance to play. He went on to play in the Chittagong Premier Division and Second Division Leagues before playing for Kadamtala Sangsad in the Dhaka Second Division Football League in 2015.

In 2016, Patiya Upazila Football Club played a friendly match with Chittagong Abahani and during the game Sazzad entered the box twice. Although he did not get a goal that day, Arman Aziz, the former national team midfielder, was impressed by Sazzad's game, and after the game he joined the newly formed Saif SC in the Bangladesh Championship League, the same year.

Saif SC
On 29 October 2016, Sazzad scored the third goal in a 3–1 victory over T & T Club, as Saif SC played their first official match During his first season at the club, Saif SC earned promotion to the top-tier, and Sazzad signed a four-year contract extension the following year. Although he did not feature for Saif SC during their inaugural season at the top flight, Sazzad made 10 appearances the next year scoring his first Bangladesh Premier League goal against Muktijoddha SKC, on 1 August 2019. On 8 February 2021, Sazzad scored a stunning a solo goal during a 3–2 win over Arambagh KS, earning him nationwide praise.

In May 2022, Sazzad got his first international call up after impressing during the first half of the 2021–22 Bangladesh Premier League, scoring 4 goals in 12 league matches.

International career
After veteran striker Nabib Newaj Jibon, was suspended from the national team due to disciplinary issues, coach Javier Cabrera called up Sazzad as a replacement striker for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification – third round & a practice game against Indonesia.

On 1 June 2022, Sazzad made his international debut for the Bangladesh national football team during a FIFA Friendly, against Indonesia.

Personal life
Before making it as a professional footballer, Sazzad worked at a NGO in the morning with a salary of Tk 2000 per month and then trained in the afternoon with his local club, due to pressure from his parents. However, he left the job within two months after joining.

In 2017, Sazzad could not play a single match for Saif SC, his father Kabir Ahmed was suffering from cancer the same year. Everyone depended on Sazzad's earnings from his playing career. However, coach Kim Grant did not let him make a single appearance during the entire season. On 21 April 2017, his father Kabir Ahmed passed away, as Sazzad was not able to pay the expensive treatment fees. Regarding his father's death, Sazzad said "I thought, if the coach had given me a chance, maybe a big club would have taken me after seeing my game. Father's treatment money would have been collected. But I never gave up hope. I kept trying."

Club

 * Notes

Senior team

 * Scores and results list Bangladesh's goal tally first.

Honours
Mohammedan SC
 * Federation Cup: 2022–23