Sri Lankan footballers will have a herculean task and will have to go flat out to notch up a win over Bangladesh in their final appearance of the inaugural Four Nation International invitation football tournament for the ‘Mahinda Rajapaksa Trophy’ at the Race Course grounds today under lights at 9.00 p.m.
After a pathetic performance which led to 1-0 defeat against Seychelles few days back, the hosts will have a tough task if they are to secure a place in the final. They will have to win this game with a margin of three or more goals if they to qualify for the final, failing which they will be ousted from the competition.
The full responsibility behind their defeat should be borne by their head coach Amir Alagic who made several blunders, especially picking the wrong starting line-up. He was criticised heavily by the football fraternity. They further emphasized that Amir was not allowing a player to concentrate in one particular position but was rotating him in various positions.
Reliable sources revealed there had been several team meetings with the participation of Football Sri Lanka officials headed by its President Jaswar Umar, who has emphasized to skipper Sujan Perera and his charges to win this game to retain their chances of qualifying for the final on the 19th of this month.
The Lankan camp will also take this opportunity to gain sweet revenge against the Bengali Tigers, as they faced an unexpected defeat in Maldives at the SAFF Games few months ago due to a referee’s blunder at a time when they dominated play. As per team sources, they are to make few changes in their line-up which they were reluctant to disclose, but are fully pumped up to give their best for the country under favourable home conditions.
Under the guidance of their new coach the Bengali Tigers are heading the table with 4 points with a win and a draw. They will seek another win with the influence of the new foreign coach who has made a drastic change to their side during his short stint.
They too are likely to make a few changes to their starting line-up and very optimistic of adding another win to their account.
Meanwhile, In the first match Maldives will take on Seychelles at 4.00 p.m. After the 4-all draw against Sri Lanka, Maldives later lost to Bangladesh 2-1 due to the goalkeeper’s blunder, and they too will no doubt be eyeing for their maiden victory.
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