SAFF Suzuki Cup semi-finalists Maldives kicked-off their Bangabandhu Gold Cup campaign with a thrilling 3-2 win over Cambodia at the Shamsul Huda Stadium in Jessore on Monday.
Forward Hassan Naiz bagged a brace while Easa Ismail scored the other goal for the winners. Vanderth Son and Dina Tit pulled two goals back for Cambodia.With the match, the Jessore phase of the competition came to an end and the crowds were given the opportunity to enter the ground without tickets to enjoy the match.
The Maldivians and the Cambodians didn’t disappoint the crowd with their swashbuckling display of attacking football.
Maldives have come into this tournament with a comparatively younger side, leaving out seven members of the SAFF Championship including their talismanic captain Ali Ashfaq.
But even without the services from most of the regular members, they gave a warning to the other sides of the competition that what they are capable of.
On the other hand, the Cambodians showed their spirit by coming from behind on two occasions against the islanders.
In a frantic encounter, Maldives took the lead in the fourth minute through Easa Ismail. Easa drilled the ball from just outside the box past Cambodian goalkeeper Seri Rath to make it 1-0.
Cambodia restored the parity in the 15th minute. Polroth Chreng headed wide inside the box to provide a nice ball for Vanderth Son, who made space with a back-heal before latching a grounder past Maldives goalkeeper Faisal Mohamed.
Maldives restored the lead from a counter attack through Hasan Naiz in the 38th minute, who finished clinically with a grounder on the edge of the box in the 38th minute.
Cambodia again levelled the margin through Dina Tit, who blasted the ball into the net after a back-pass from Chanrasmey Sok in the stoppage time of the first half.
Cambodia came back strongly in the second half with a better ball possession and created a couple of good chances but Maldives sealed the match with a sucker punch in the 78th minute.
Hasan Naiz got his second of the day by poking the ball past Cambodian keeper.
-With New Age input
