Winning outside the country is a big achievement for any team. Even more so for the Kings of Bashundhara. Winning the first match was very important for them to go to the next round as the group best in the AFC Cup!
Bashundhara won the match against the host Maziya Sports and Recreation Club in Maldives. Bashundhara’s dream came true in the AFC Cup with a 2-0 win at the Maldives National Football Stadium.
The start of the four-team group fight is in line with expectations. Bashundhara’s confidence is now at its peak after winning against the country’s champion club, which is 36 steps ahead of Bangladesh (18) in the world football rankings.
The opponent will be Bangalore FC of India at the same ground tomorrow. The game will start at 5 pm Bangladesh time. It was a life-and-death match for Bangalore, who lost 2-0 to Mohun Bagan, another Indian team.
Bashundhara and Mohun Bagan are ahead by 3 points in the first match. Analysts consider Mohun Bagan to be the best in the group, Bashundhara in two, Bangalore in three and Maziya in four. But there is Sunil Chhetri in Bangalore! Goalless Chhetri will be hungry against Mohun Bagan. But Bashundhara is also ready to stop him.
Bashundhara, who took a 2-0 lead in the first half against Maziya, played tactical football. Forward Robson de Silva was the opponent’s terror. The way the Brazilian scored the team’s second goal from inside the box is impressive. Argentine striker Raul Besera, who came on the field after recovering from injury, has also spread panic.
Maziya’s captain Mohammad Irfan sent the ball to his own net after passing a long back in the fight for possession of the ball with him. The road to victory was opened in front of Bashundhara which went ahead 1-0.
Midfielder Masuk Mia and defender Tariq Kazi said in the excitement of the victory, they are ready to win against Bangalore. But Tapu Varman is a little cautious. “No matter who the opponent is, winning an international match is not easy,” the Bashundhara captain said over phone from Male yesterday.
But he hopes, ‘Our teamwork with Maziya has been good. If I can hold on to that, I hope I will lose to Bangalore too. ‘
The first of Sunil Chhetri’s two goals against Bangladesh in the World Cup qualifiers in Qatar last June was scored by Tapu. “The girl is not playing as the traditional number nine in this tournament,” said Tapu, who was ready to stop the girl in the club’s jersey. We must stop him.
In the first match, Bashundhara’s coach Oscar Bruzon attack table was blocked by Maziya. “We gave Maziya a chance to make room,” Bruzon told AFC’s website at the end of the match. So that many of them come up in attack. At this point, we become dangerous in a counter-attack. ”
Speaking about the match against Mohun Bagan on 23 August, the Spanish coach said, “Mohun Bagan and I will survive even if we lose the second match. But I want to go one step further by losing to Bangalore. ‘
Bashundhara Kings is now a big force in Bangladesh football after winning three consecutive tournaments including two Premier Leagues. In domestic football, getting on their field means victory. After winning five titles in the country’s football, the question was how do they do on foreign soil? They beat Maldives champions Majia Sports 2-0 at the Maldives last night to show that their power is not diminishing abroad.
Bangladesh 16 and Maldives 158 in world football. The island’s latest Premier League undefeated champions lost 2-0 to start the AFC Cup. The bigger issue is the way Bashundhara has won tomorrow. One goal of Bashundhara is Brazilian forward Robson da Silver, the other is suicide.
Oscar Bruzon of Spain has been the coach of the team since Bashundhara was named in the highest-level football of the country. Oli Galli was well known in the Maldives for his coaching skills. That’s how he planned yesterday.
In an interview with the AFC website at the end of the match, Brujon said: “We knew Majia would like to make room for the game. But the important thing is that 90 minutes my team did the right thing. We gave Majia a chance to play desperately. Many of their players come up on the attack. With each attack we become much more dangerous.’ On the first day yesterday, all the four teams of ‘D’ group took the field. India’s Mohun Bagan also won with Bashundhara.
After their first win, the two winning teams went ahead in the fight to get a ticket to the next round. The picture of the group stage fight is now clear to Bruges, ‘Now one thing is clear, we have survived the tournament until the last match. If Majia wants to play the next round, they must win both matches. The situation is similar in Bangalore. Even if Mohun Bagan loses the second match, we will survive till the last match. That’s the decent thing to do, and it should end there. ”
Bashundhara will play its second match on August 21 against Bangalore in India. “We will have more chances than today’s (tomorrow) match against Bangalore,” said Brujun, who is leading his side against Bangalore more than the Majia match.
One of the most successful coaches in the AFC Cup is Riaz Vidakovic. The Serbian coach credited Bashundhara for winning the match, saying, “They are a stronger and faster team than us. We knew it would be a tough match. We didn’t play well in the first half. We were under nervous pressure. I played a long pass. Although the game improved in the second half, it was not enough.’