Abahani salvaged a late draw to keep their hope alive of ensuring their fifth professional league title with a 1-1 draw against their perennial foes Mohammedan Sporting Club in the Bangladesh Premier League on Sunday.
Mohammedan’s Ghanaian forward Osei Morison scored a heartbreaking goal against Abahani in the 25th minute but Atikur Rhaman Meshu converted a free kick into the back of the net in the 85th minute which kept Abahani in the title race.
With the draw, Abahani went joint top of the table alongside Sheikh Russell with 29 points from 14 matches while Mohammedan remained in fourth position with 11 points from the same number of matches.
Abahani will play Team BJMC and Muktijoddha Sangsad in their last two matches and they have to win both and also hope their closest challengers Sheikh Russell and Sheikh Jamal drop points in their matches.
Running down the left flank in the third minute, Towhidul Alam rendered a cutback pass to Sakhawat Hossain Rony into the middle of the penalty area but Rony could hardly connect the ball before it was cleared by a Mohammedan defender.
Mohammedan took the lead in the 25th minute when a super backspin chip by Mohammedan midfielder Maruf Ahmed allowed Osei Morison to beat the offside trap and neatly slammed the ball past the onrushing Abahani goalkeeper Shahidul Alam Sohel.
Rony wasted another good chance in the extra time of the first half as Towhidul Alam again provided a fine cross from the left flank but Rony’s header from inside the box flew over the crosspiece.
Three minutes after the break, Towhidul’s header from close range went over the crossbar following a free kick by Atikur Rahman Meshu.
In the 53rd minute, Towhidul once again failed to score from an empty net. After a through pass from Awudu Ibrahim, substitute forward Abdul Baten Komol’s square pass created a clear-cut scoring chance for Towhidul whose placing shot missed the bar by an inch.
Meshu equalized in the 85th minute when he floated a curling free kick from the right flank of the box which Mohammedan goalkeeper Mamun Khan failed to judge properly.
-With New Age input
