ZCZC
BSP-16
FOOTBALL-AFC-U-23-BANGLADESH
Bangladesh blank Sri Lanka in AFC U-23 Qualifiers
DHAKA, March 27, 2019 (BSS) – The Bangladesh U-23 national team finished the AFC U-23 Championship 2020 qualifiers campaign on a winning note as they blanked Sri Lanka by 2-0 goals in their third and final Group B encounter held on Tuesday evening.
Jamie’s men went into the match determined to notch a victory to reward themselves for all the hard work they put in the first two games against Bahrain and Palestine in their group phase engagements.
Bangladesh made their intentions clear right from the kick-off and started to bombard the Lankan defense with attack after attack. Reward came in just five minutes into the match when midfielder Biplob Ahmed cut inside from the left flank and after beating a couple of defenders with delightful footwork, the Bangladesh number eight sent the ball into the net with a precise right footed placing shot.
Bangladesh players continued their attack and the Red and Greens went 2-0 ahead just 13 minutes later. Defender Tutul Hossen Badsha produced a back-flip in the 18th minute to double Bangladesh’s lead.
Conceding two goals inside 18 minutes, the Islanders began to play defensive and tried to keep the Bangladesh attackers at bay. Therefore, after the second goal, the match became a tale of Bangladesh attack and Sri Lanka defense which did not change much in the second half either.
Better finishing could have extended Bangladesh’s margin of victory even more but it was not to be so. The Red and Greens left the field with on the final whistle with a victory and a clean sheet.
Even though Bangladesh did not qualify for the finals, their performance in the tournament speaks volumes about their ability to play against the big guns as manifested in the first two matches against Bahrain and Palestine. The victory just tops off a great tournament played by the U-23 boys.
BSS/SG/SMM/1730