Liton, Asrorov knock out Abahani
Goalkeeper Rasel Mahmud Liton produced two saves in the tiebreaker as minnows Rahmatganj knocked out three-time defending champions Abahani from the quarterfinals of the TVS Federation Cup at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.
The former national team goalkeeper showed excellent glovework all through the 90 minutes of regulation time which ended goalless, and after 30 minutes of extra time produced a 1-1 stalemate, Liton saved penalties from Sunday Chizoba and Kervens Belfort -- Abahani’s two best players -- to lead his side to a stunning 4-3 victory.
It was the first time since 2017 that the Old Dhaka outfit made it to the last four of the season’s curtain-raising tournament while the last time Abahani failed to make it to the semifinals was in 2015.
Abahani had a slew of chances to take the game by the scruff of its neck within the first 20 minutes, but incredible missed opportunities from Nabib Newaz Jibon and Sunday denied them from taking an early lead.
Rahmatganj were very disciplined in defence, especially from set-pieces, yet Abahani had only themselves to blame for not making the most of their chances, with Jibon and substitute Jewel Rana wasting further opportunities.
The Sky Blues though, took the lead in the fourth minute of extra time when Belfort smashed home a volley on a long-ball from Mailson Veriato, but Rahmatganj found a way to take the game into tiebreakers, with substitute Enamul Islam Gazi taking advantage of Abahani goalkeeper Shahidul Alam’s poor judgement to head home the equaliser in the 119th minute.
The tie-breaker proved full of excitement as Liton saved two of five spot-kicks while Rahmatganj players converted all four they took, including a sublime panenka from Acpopob Asrorov, who had set up Enamul’s equaliser moments earlier.
Abahani coach Mario Lemos was a frustrated man to say the least.
“My team did not play well today, everyone was poor. We created chances in the first half, but we didn’t play well overall,” the Portuguese coach said. “They (Rahmatganj) fought and they ran. Maybe I should have made some changes.”
Mohammedan stun Chattogram Abahani
Mohammedan booked their place in the semifinals of the Federation Cup for the first time since 2015 with a 2-0 win over Chattogram Abahani in the second quarterfinal later in the day.
Shahed Hossain opened the scoring for Mohammedan on 25 minutes with a placed shot on a miscued clearance from Ikbol Jon before Souleymane Diabate doubled the lead with a similar effort five minutes later.
It was game, set and match for the Black and Whites who showed tremendous spirit to keep the port city side, who had not conceded a single goal before this match, at bay.
Mohammedan coach Sean Lane attributed the camaraderie and teamwork between his players and the support of backroom staff to their success while Chattogram Abahani coach Maruful Haque blamed overconfidence of his players for the defeat.
Mohammadan and Rahmatganj will face off in the first semifinal on January 2.
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