BENGALURU FC OUT OF CONTENTION

Male, Aug. 21: A goal remained elusive for Bengaluru FC despite a late onslaught as they played out a 0-0 draw with Bashundhara Kings of Bangladesh to be virtually out of contention for a knock-out berth in the AFC Cup here on Saturday.

Bengaluru thought they had scored the decisive goal in the 74th minute only to see Alan Henrique Costa’s header hit the crossbar in their second Group ‘D’ match.

With just one point from two matches, Bengaluru FC are out of equation for a spot in the knock-out stage with only the group winners making the grade.

Bashundhara, on four points now, should thank their goalkeeper Anisur Rahman for making a series of saves late in the match to help the Bangladesh Premier League champions earn a potentially crucial draw. In a match where both sides had enough chances to claim all three points, Rahman and his Bengaluru opposite Gurpreet Singh Sandhu both proved unbeatable, with Bashundhara’s share of the spoils proving far more valuable in the group standings.

Bashundhara came into the match hoping to build on their opening win over Maziya Sports & Recreation, while Bengaluru had no room for failure following their defeat against ATK Mohun Bagan, and neither side gave anything away in a cagey opening period.

A mazy run from Bashundhara’s Robinho gave a glimpse of the talent the Bangladeshi champions had at their disposal but it was Bengaluru defender Yrondu Musavu-King who had the first real scoring chance of the game when his header was well saved by Anisur Rahman. —