Bangladesh lost all the three group matches finishing at the bottom of the table without having any points
Sports News Desk: Bangladesh suffered a massive 1-4 goals defeat to the hosts Malaysia to finish their AFC Asian Cup qualifiers campaign on a disappointing note at Bukit Jalil National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
The win, however, ensured Malaysia a place in the AFC Asian Cup next year as they unleashed their attacking prowess against Bangladesh during the final Group E match.
The result saw Malaysia finish in second place in the group behind Bahrain, who defeated Turkmenistan 1-0 in the day’s first match to finish with nine points from three matches.
Bangladesh conceded the first goal from a penalty when Bangladesh defender Fahad fouled Malaysian forward Matthew Davis inside the box and another forward Muhammad Safawi Rasid gave the home side the lead by converting the spot-kick correctly in the 16th minute.
The men in red and green made an impressive comeback in the match when Mohammad Ibrahim, who scored against Turkmenistan in the previous match, levelled the margin with the header utilizing a back-header from midfielder Rakib off a long throw-in from defender Bishwanath.
The home team got a relief when expat centre-back Dion Cools extended the lead 2-1 with a left-footed shot from the right flank of the box off a quick pass from forward Mohamad Faisal Halim in the 38th minute.
Bangladesh conceded the third goal just after the halftime as Malay captain cum Forward Muhammad Syafiq Ahmad sent the ball to the nets with a back header off a long cross from Faisal Halim.
Bangladesh’s misery continued when substitute forward Darren Lok made the margin 4-1 utilizing a defensive error in the 73rd minute and sealed his team’s return to the AFC Asian Cup on merit for the first time since the 1980 edition.
It was Bangladesh’s second-biggest defeat against Malaysia as they previously lost a match by 0-6 goals in Kings Cup in 1976.
The men in red and green could have conceded more goals in the game but goalkeeper Anisur Rahman Zico denied some close attempts from Malaysian strikers.
Bangladesh earlier conceded 0-2 and 1-2 goals defeats to Bahrain and Turkmenistan respectively in their previous two matches in the tournament.