BANGLADESH EDGE OUT SRI LANKA 1-0 IN SAFF OPENER
Topu Barman’s 56th-minute spot-kick handed Bangladesh a winning start to their SAFF Football Championship campaign as they edged out Sri Lanka 1-0 at the National Stadium in the Maldives yesterday.
The veteran centre-back converted the crucial penalty calmly after Sri Lankan defender Duckson Puslas had deliberately handled the ball inside the box on a chip from Biplo Ahmed.
This was altogether a double blow for Sri Lanka as Puslas had to leave the field immediately following a red card.
Earlier, Barman also came closer to breaking the deadlock after forcing a fingertip save from Sri Lanka goalkeeper Sujan Perera at the stroke of half time. This was Bangladesh’s 11th win over Sri Lanka overall and their first success since 2016.
Both teams showed their intentions to get on with the game from the kickoff and Sri Lanka had the better of the exchanges mostly during the first half. However, Bangladesh came out with a different game plan in the second half and they had the Sri Lankans defending under pressure for a longer period. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka Skipper Sujan Perera was disappointed with the result and believed that if not for the penalty the match would have gone in their favour. In fact, the Sri Lankan goalkeeper was outstanding throughout the game and brought out some splendid saves to keep the opposition at bay. Sri Lanka’s next match of the tournament will be against Nepal on October 4.