Bangladesh kicked off their 2018 World Cup qualifiers campaign with a 3-1 defeat to a lower-ranked Kyrgyzstan who handed the men in red and green their biggest home defeat in their qualifiers history in front of around five thousands crowd at the rain soaked Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.
Zemlianuhin Anton scored a brilliant brace for the visitors as Bernhardt Edgar sneaked in between from the penalty spot while the only goal for Bangladesh also came from Kirghiz defender Kichin Valerii.
A moderate crowd cheered the home team as Bangladesh kicked off the match having good possession complemented by some clever moves from captain Mamunul Islam and Jamal Bhuyan from the left midfield. But, as Bangladesh always does, unnecessary tackling changed the momentum of the game.
Hemanta Vincent Biswas was the first culprit to concede a spot kick from 25 yards out in the ninth minute. The distance hardly mattered to Zemlianuhin who locked his target and curled it in with a left-footed strike to beat Bangladesh goalkeeper Rasel Mahmud Liton from the far post.
The home side, who took early leads in both the international friendlies in build up to this tournament recently, got desperate to equalise and should have pulled it back in the 11th minute but Tapu Barman failed to convert a good pass from Jamal and only settled for their first corner.
Yeamin Munna’s needless tackle on Viktor Maier just before the half-hour mark cost Bangladesh equally. Referee Sukhbir Singh from Singapore was strict enough to award a penalty on the foul inside the D-box as Edgar was successful in bringing his team a comfortable lead.
Two goals down and it had to be captain Mamunul to show the way. His corner, just three minutes later, in a dangerous area provided the much needed goal for the home side as visiting defender Kichin Valerii’s attempt to clear the ball only ended up in their own net.
The home side seemed to have got their rhythm back as they pushed back the visitors until Zemlianuhin’s left-footed cannon-ball shot from just outside the box sealed the game for the under-ranked Kyrgyzstan in the 41st minute. The gloomy Bengali faces received another jolt before the breather as defender Nasir Uddin got injured and was substituted by Rayhan Hasan.
Ooh and aahs marred the second half as Bangladesh came close on several occasions through Mamunul’s free-kicks and Rayhan’s long throws.
The worst possible scene was waiting for the home side as their coach Lodewijk de Kruif was sent off during the added four minutes for his frequent argument with fourth official.
Bangladesh will face Tajikistan next Tuesday in their second match at the same venue.
