BD lose against Nepal

Bangladesh had to settle for a runners-up spot in the group stages of the inaugural SAFF U-19 Championship in Nepal after conceding a 2-1 defeat against the hosts at the ANFA Complex Ground in Lalitpur, Kathmandu yesterday.

The Bengal Tigers, who needed an outright victory to finish above the hosts, had taken the lead in the 11th minute, only to concede the equaliser seven minutes later before gifting the opposition with a calamitous own goal deep into stoppage time of the second half. The defeat means Bangladesh will have to face the champions of Group B in Thursday's second semifinal, with favourites India in pole position to top that group.

Having confirmed the semifinal berth with a less-than-emphatic 2-0 victory over Bhutan in the opening match, Bangladesh were expected to take their game a few notches higher against the Nepalese challenge. And they gave all the indication of a much improved performance when Rohit Sarkar opened the scoring for the second consecutive game, finishing off with a powerful drive into the far corner of the net after being fed through with a delightful defence-splitting pass by Mannaf Rabbi.

Bangladesh goalkeeper Anisur Rahman then produced a brilliant finger-tip save to deny Nepal's premier marksman Bimal Gharti Magar in the 16th minute before defender Mohammad Salahuddin inadvertently handled the ball inside the box to concede a spot-kick. Anisur was sent the wrong way by Nepal forward Anjan Bistha and the scores were level, with only 18 minutes on the clock. 

Chances kept coming at both ends as the game remained open and high-paced, with Bangladesh winger Mohammad Ibrahim hitting the crossbar with a long-range effort before Salahuddin made a goalline clearance to deny Anjan from giving hosts the lead in the 25th minute.

Mannaf's brilliantly controlled a cross from Rohit but lost his footing with goalkeeper beaten as an entertaining first half came to an end.

The pace of the game slowed down considerably after the break, but Mannaf wasted a gilt-edged chance in the 86th minute, heading wide from close range before centre-back Tutul Hossain Badshah conceded a free-kick some 10 yards outside the danger zone and then put the ball into his own net while trying to clear the danger from the resulting in the 92nd minute, leaving no time for his side to stage a comeback.

“The match was challenging as we were up against the home team. We went for it and performed well. We had lots of chances in both halves, but it was in the second half that we missed two sitters,” rued Bangladesh coach Saiful Bari Titu. “Playing against the home team is always a pressure. We have to make the right moves and take the right chances in the next match.”