Bangladesh emerge Group champions with emphatic win over Sri Lanka

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Bangladesh signed off their SAFF Championship group-stage campaign in emphatic fashion, sweeping aside Sri Lanka 4-0 at the National Stadium on Wednesday to emerge Group A champions with a perfect record, reports BSS.

Shamit Shome, Hamza Choudhury, Farhaan Ali Wahid and Rakib Hossain struck as Bangladesh registered back-to-back victories without conceding a goal, capping a dominant group-stage campaign in style.

Already assured of a semi-final berth following their 1-0 victory over Bhutan, the hosts had the added incentive of finishing top of the group. They delivered in convincing fashion, producing an assured and attacking display that left the Islanders with little answer.

Bangladesh will now face Group B runners-up Pakistan in the second semi-final on November 14 at 8:30 pm. Group B champions India will take on Group A runners-up Bhutan in the first semi-final at 3 pm on the same day.

The hosts set the tone from the outset, pressing high and repeatedly exposing gaps in the Sri Lankan defence. Their early pressure yielded the opening goal in the eighth minute.

Hamza Choudhury started the move with a cross from the right, which Sri Lankan goalkeeper Sujan Perera failed to hold. Shamit pounced on the loose ball inside the box. His first attempt was blocked by a defender, but the midfielder reacted quickly to fire home the rebound.

Hamza, wearing the captain's armband for the first time, doubled the advantage just before the interval with a superb individual effort.

Receiving a pass from Mohammad Ibrahim inside the box in the 44th minute, Hamza brought the ball under control, evaded a defender and advanced towards goal. As Perera rushed off his line, the midfielder unleashed a powerful shot beyond the goalkeeper to make it 2-0.

If the first-half display demonstrated Bangladesh's attacking organisation, Farhaan's goal after the restart provided the night's most spectacular moment.

In the 53rd minute, the young forward embarked on a dazzling solo run from the left flank, weaving past four Sri Lankan defenders with exceptional close control and footwork before drilling an angled shot into the net.

Bangladesh continued to threaten on the counter-attack, while Sri Lanka struggled to contain the hosts' pace and movement going forward.

Rakib Hossain put the finishing touch on the performance in the 87th minute. Racing through on goal and finding himself one-on-one with Perera, Rakib showed remarkable composure to lift the ball over the advancing goalkeeper and into the net, completing a comprehensive 4-0 victory.

Sri Lanka did attempt to mount a response, creating a handful of attacking opportunities, but Bangladesh's disciplined defensive display kept them at bay.

However Bangladesh had threatened even before opening the scoring. In the fourth minute, Hamza's free-kick from just outside the penalty area sailed over the crossbar. Three minutes later, Farhaan failed to control a dangerous delivery from Rakib inside the box, allowing Perera to collect the ball.

Earlier, Bangladesh made three changes to the starting XI that faced Bhutan. Hamza and Farhaan returned to the lineup, replacing regular captain Jamal Bhuyan and Faisal Ahmed Fahim, respectively. Mohammad Ibrahim also came into the side in place of Bishwanath Ghosh after scoring the winner against Bhutan as a substitute.

Bangladesh XI: Mehedi Sarabon (GK), Zayyan Ahmed, Saad Uddin, Zidane Yousuf, Tariq Kazi, Shamit Shome, Hamza Choudhury (C), Quazem Shah, Farhaan Ali Wahid, Rakib Hossain and Mohammad Ibrahim.