Federation Cup and Bangladesh Premier League champions Abahani's dreams of winning their first treble ground to a halt with a 0-3 defeat against lightweights Arambagh in the third quarterfinal of Walton Independence Cup at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.
Since the introduction of the professional football league only Sheikh Russel achieved the rare feat of winning a treble. Abahani, who had come close to winning a treble last season as well before losing the Independence Cup final to Chittagong Abahani, wasted another opportunity after yesterday's defeat, meaning they will have to be content with two trophies out of three this season.
League champions Abahani were tipped as favourites against a youthful Arambagh, who were on the back foot in the first half and were busy thwarting attacks from the opposition, but they turned the game around in the second half by scoring from counter-attacks.
“Football is a game of goals. You have to accept defeat when you don't score but concede goals,” Abahani manager Satyajit Das Rupu said at the end of the match. “Arambagh did not score goals by putting pressure on us; rather we awarded the goals to them from silly mistakes.”
“When you want to achieve a feat [e.g. treble], you must perform accordingly, but today [Friday] the boys could not justify their names and could not play their natural game,” said a frustrated Rupu.
The first half of the game belonged to Abahani, who could easily have taken the lead, but captain Mamun Mia, wingers Shohel Rana and Rubel Mia squandered some easy scoring opportunities to frustrate a few hundred Abahani fans gathered at the big bowl.
Abahani kept pressing after the break and Rubel floated over the crossbar with only Arambagh goalkeeper Azam Khan to beat in the 55th minute before Arambagh took the lead from a counter-attack in the 62nd minute.
Arif ran down deep from the left flank to dribble past an Abahani defender before cutting it back for Abu Sufian Sufil, who drove a left-footer into the net from the middle of the box.
Abahani were still enjoying better ball possession and got a chance to equalise in the 80th minute, but Nabib Jewaz Jibon saw his close-range header tipped over the crossbar.
Arambagh, though, widened the margin from another counter-attack in the following minute through a chip from Mohammad Jewel, who controlled a left-flank cross from Sufil and sent it over advancing goalkeeper Shahidul Alam Sohel. Shahriar Bappy then ensured the victory with an eye-catching curling drive from outside the box in the 85th minute.
“We have improved day by day,” Arambagh coach Maruful Haque said in his post-match reaction. “We have been playing better football in this tournament compared to the premier league. I believe in my boys, who have the ability and today they just executed the plan accordingly,”
