'We should have won'
Syrian referee Hasoud Tufayelieh's long whistle at the end of 90 minutes at the Hwaseong Main Stadium brought most of the Bangladesh players down on the greenish pitch. Along with the match, the shrill sound brought an end to their dream playing the round of 16 in the Asian Games for the first time, despite having put up a fighting performance against Hong Kong.
Captain Mamunul Islam, defender Rayhan Hasan and goalkeeper Rasel Mahmud Liton burst into tears while the players at the sideline looked far more dejected.
“The way we started, we thought we would come out with a victory. But we lost a match which we should have won. Keep the history away... I am really feeling bad for not winning this match,” said Zahid Hossain.
Zahid was inspired by coach Lodewijk de Kruif, who told him that Bangladesh would play a very good game if he performed well.
A tearful Rayhan could barely speak. “We played better as we created a lot of chances but we could not win the game at the end. Players like Jamal[Bhuiyan] and Hemanta [Vincent Bishwas] could not score from close range; shots they don't miss during practice,” lamented Rayhan.
Despite the defeat Rayhan was of the opinion that their fighting performance would encourage the national team to put up good performances in the future.
A seemingly disappointed Bangladesh coach, believed that Bangladesh were heading in the right direction despite the defeat.
“I am really sorry for my boys. When you play like this, you deserve a reward but the boys did not get it,” said De Kruif adding that he was disappointed to lose despite dominating the game throughout the 90 minutes.
“After analysing the game I had to say to the assistant coach that the difference should have been 70/30. We tried to attack whenever we could, but when you attack you are likely to be vulnerable and they scored from two corner kicks,” explained the 44-year Dutchman.
"Of course, I feel the absence of someone who can score goals easily. When you play like this, you need a reward. If we win games like this, we will keep moving ahead. We feel the absence of a real killer. The problem is that there is only one senior player, Zahid Hossain Emily who regularly plays, and he was injured and could not come,” said De Kruif.
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