Nabib Newaj Jibon (; born 17 August 1990) is a Bangladeshi professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a striker for

Bangladesh Premier League Bangladesh Premier League (), also known as Dutch-Bangla Bank BPL for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket league in Bangladesh organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). It was formed in 2011 by the BCB, after the su ...

club

Rahmatganj MFS Rahmatganj Muslim Friends Society (Bengali language, Bengali : রহমতগঞ্জ মুসলিম ফ্রেন্ডস সোসাইটি) is a Bangladeshi professional association football, football club based in Old Dhaka. Found ...

and the Bangladesh national team.

Club career

Early career

Jibon's career started in 2006, when he played the JFA Cup U-16 tournament. His performance during the competition earned him a place in the three-month-long Bangladesh U-17 national camp. However, he could not make it to the final squad. In 2007, he made his Pioneer League debut with Noakhali Football Academy and finished the season as top scorer with 11 goals. The following year he played in the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

with

Ashulia Ashulia is a suburban area near Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh. Nearby areas are Savar, Savar DOHS, and Tongi. The attractive view of Ashulia lake and vast paddy fields of Ashulia makes it a popular tourist spot.Khulna Khulna (, ) is the third-largest city in Bangladesh, after Dhaka and Chittagong. It is the administrative centre of the Khulna District and the Khulna Division. It is the divisional centre of 10 districts of the division. Khulna is also the seco ...

, and also in

Chittagong Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...

, with Chittagong Mohammedan SC in 2009. In 2010, Jibon made his

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

debut with

Uttar Baridhara Club Uttar Baridhara Club () is a Bangladeshi football club, established in 1995, based in Kalachandpur, Baridhara, Dhaka. They currently compete in the Dhaka Senior Division League, the third tier of Bangladeshi football, following relegation from ...

. In 2012 the

Bangladesh Championship League Bangladesh Championship League (), simply known as the BCL and officially Bashundhara Group, ABG Bashundhara Bangladesh Championship League since 2023 for sponsorship reasons, is the second-tier professional association football, football league ...

was introduced, as the country's professional second-tier league, and after finishing runners up in the league in 2013, Uttar Baridhara was promoted to the

. Jibon was an integral part of the team, scoring 12 goals in just 13 matches. He attracted the interest of many topflight clubs after that season and ended up joining

Team BJMC Team Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (Team BJMC) was a football club in Bangladesh that was mainly located in the city of Dhaka. History The club was formerly known as East Pakistan IDC prior to 1971 and Bangladesh JIC from 1971 until 1975 ...

. On 25 June 2014, he scored his first Premier League goal coming in a 2–2 with Mohammedan SC. During his second year he managed to get 4 goals and 10 assists out of 18 matches. He also spent time on loan at Mohammedan SC in 2015, for the 2015 Sheikh Kamal International Cup, the same year he made his Bangladesh national team debut.

Abahani Limited Dhaka

On 1 January 2017, Jibon got his big move to

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

giants

Abahani Limited Dhaka Abahani Limited Dhaka (), also referred as Dhaka Abahani or Abahani Limited, is a Bangladeshi professional Association football, football club based in the Dhanmondi area of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The club currently competes in the Bangladesh Pr ...

, under coach

György Kottán György Kottán (6 October 1946 – 25 September 2023), also referred to as a Georg Kottán or George Kottán, was a Hungarian-Austrian football manager and player. He guided the Bangladesh national team to their first SAFF Championship in 2003 ...

. He won the league title during his second year at the club. His first two seasons at the club, Jibon managed to get limited game time, with foreign strikers occupying the forward line. However, after the appointment of Mário Lemos, during the 2018–19 season, Jibon was converted into a false nine, behind striking duo- Sunday Chizoba and

Kervens Belfort Kervens Fils Belfort (born 16 May 1992) is a Haitian professional footballer who plays as a winger or forward for Lalitpur City. Club career Belfort has played for Tempête, Le Mans B, Le Mans, Sion, Grenoble, Fréjus Saint-Raphaël, Et ...

. He thrived while playing in the new position, scoring 16 goals and attaining 6 assists during the league season. His best performance that season came against

, when he managed to score a hat-trick. The

2019 AFC Cup The 2019 AFC Cup was the 16th edition of the AFC Cup, Asia's secondary club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Al-Ahed from Lebanon won the title for the first time, defeating April 25 from North Korea in ...

saw Abahani become the first Bangladeshi club to reach the knockouts of the competition. Jibon scored twice during the group stages, and his goal against Minerva Punjab also earned him AFC recognition. During the

knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, ...

match against

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

n side

April 25 SC April 25 Sports Club (, ''Sa io ch'eyuktan''), shortly 4.25 SC, also known as April 25 National Defence Sports Club (4.25'국방체육단', ''Sa io "Kukpang ch'eyuktan"''), is a multi-sports club based in Pyongyang, North Korea, primarily known ...

, Jibon also found the net as Abahani won the game 4–3.

International career

On 13 October 2015, Jibon made his senior debut against

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...

during the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. On 8 January 2018, he scored his first international goal against

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

during the

2016 Bangabandhu Cup The 2016 Bangabandhu Cup or 2016 Bangabandhu Gold Cup was an international association football tournament organised by the Bangladesh Football Federation as a tribute to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Launched in 1996, ...

Personal life

Jibon was born in Shibganj Upazila of

Bogra District Bogra District, officially Bogura District (), is a district in the northern part of Bangladesh, in Rajshahi Division. Bogra is an industrial city where many small and mid-sized companies are sited. Bogra was a part of the Pundravardhana terri ...

. His grandfather, Aftab Hossain Mondal, was a footballer who played for both

Mohun Bagan Mohun Bagan Super Giant, commonly referred to as Mohun Bagan, is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, it is one of the oldest football clubs in Asia. The club competes in the Indian Super League, ...

and

Kalighat Milan Sangha FC Kalighat Milan Sangha Football Club (known simply as Kalighat MS, formerly Kalighat Club) is an Indian multi-sports club based in Kalighat, Kolkata, West Bengal. Its football team currently competes in the Premier Division of Calcutta Football ...

in the

Calcutta Football League The Calcutta Football League (CFL) is a ladder-based football competition in the Indian state of West Bengal, organised by the Indian Football Association (WB) as part of the state leagues. It is the oldest football league in Asia. The CFL ...

during the British regime. His uncle Shahinur Kabir Shimul represented the

Bangladesh national football team The Bangladesh national football team () is the national recognised football team of Bangladesh and is controlled by the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF). It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) since 1973 and of FIFA sin ...

during the

1986 Asian Games The 1986 Asian Games (), officially known as the 10th Asian Games and the X Asiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1986 (), were held from 20 September to 5 October 1986, in Seoul, South Korea. The venues and facilities of the 10th Asiad were the sa ...

. In 2021, Jibon was stranded in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

after undergoing surgery on his right knee during the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

pandemic. He was able to return to Bangladesh with the help of

India national football team The India national football team represents India in men's international Association football, football and is governed by the All India Football Federation, the governing body for Football in India, football in India. It is a member of FIFA, ...

player

Pritam Kotal Pritam Kotal (; born 8 September 1993) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Indian Super League club Chennaiyin and the India national team. After passing through the youth academies of Chirag United and Wari, ...

and his wife, Sonel Paul.

Career statistics

Club

;Notes

International

International goals

Olympic Team

National Team

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

Honours

Abahani Limited Dhaka *

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, 2017–18 * Federation Cup:

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

* Independence Cup:

Bangladesh U23 *

South Asian Games The South Asian Games is a quadrennial multi-sport event held among athletes from South Asia. The South Asia Olympic Council, which was formed in 1983, governs it. The Games consist of seven countries, namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, N ...

bronze medal:

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jibon, Nabib Newaj Living people 1990 births Bangladeshi men's footballers Bangladesh men's youth international footballers Bangladesh men's international footballers Men's association football forwards Uttar Baridhara Club players Team BJMC players Mohammedan SC (Dhaka) players Abahani Limited Dhaka players Rahmatganj MFS players Bangladesh Premier League footballers South Asian Games bronze medalists for Bangladesh South Asian Games medalists in football People from Bogra District Footballers from Rajshahi Division 21st-century Bangladeshi sportsmen