Bangladesh took a solo lead in the five-nation Group B of the AFC U-20 Asian Cup Qualifiers beating Bhutan by 2-1 goal in their 2nd match at the Sheikh Ali Bin Mohammed Bin Khalifa Stadium in Bahrain Monday night  After the match, the red and green boys dominated  the Group B with unbeaten record securing four points from two matches while Bhutan went down to the 3rd slot with three points from two encounters.. Earlier, Bangladesh made a good start in the AFC U-20 Asian Cup Qualifiers after playing goalless draw with stronger Bahrain in their soil in the first match at the same venue last Saturday. Read: SAFF U-17: Bangladesh eliminated with defeat against India In the 2nd Group B match, Pias Ahmmed Nova put Bangladesh team ahead in the 33rd minute pushing the ball home, capitalizing an accurate  pass from winger Rafiqul Islam (1-0). Bhutan created strong pressure over Bangladesh from the very beginning of the 2nd half and took it fruit immediately as Santa Kumar Limboo leveled the margin in the 59th minute by an angular shot from the right wing (1-1) Ashraful Haque Asif scored the match winning goal for Bangladesh just two minutes before the final whistle (2-1). Read:AFC U-20 Asian Cup: Bangladesh hold stronger Bahrain to a goalless draw  In other group matches, Bhutan beat Nepal by 2-0 goals and Qater outplayed Nepal by 3-1 goals.  Bangladesh, which was placed in strong Group B of the Asian qualifying round with stronger Qatar, hosts Bahrain, Nepal and Bhutan, will play Qatar on Sept 16 and Nepal on Sept 18 in the remaining group matches. A total 43 Asian countries, split into 10 groups, are competing in the first phase of the meet.  Later, ten group champions and five best runners-up teams alongwith hosts Uzbekistan will play in the 16-team final round of the meet in Uzbekistan next year.    

Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) champions Bashundhara Kings got off to a winning start in the Group D of the AFC Cup Football 2022 after a 1-0 victory against Maldives' Maziya Sports and Recreation Club at Yuba Bharati Krirangan (Salt Lake Stadium) in Kolkata Wednesday. This was the second consecutive win for the Kings against Maziya in the AFC Cup after their 2-0 win against the Maldivian champions in Male last year. Gambian striker Nuha Marong scored the winning goal for the Kings in the 33rd minute with a good header (1-0). Earlier, Ibrahim of the Kings managed a good chance in the 11th minute to put his side in the lead when a shot of Brazilian playmaker Robson Robinho came his way hitting the bar, but he sent the ball wide. The last two times BPL champions Kings, who were placed in Group D of the AFC Cup, will face ATK Mohun Bagan on May 21 and Gokulam Kerala FC on May 24 in their remaining group matches. In the day's first match, I-League champions Gokulam Kerala FC beat Kolkata's Mohun Bagan 4-2 at the same venue in the afternoon. READ: AFC Cup: Bashundhara Kings to play Maziya S&RC of Maldives on Wednesday Mohun Bagan qualified for the group stage of the AFC Cup after beating Dhaka Abahani 3-1 in a play-off match in Kolkata on April 19. Eyeing  a run to the final on October 22, 38 leading clubs of Asia, split into 10 groups, will battle it out for the continental club crown. The AFC Cup, introduced in 2004, has offered substantial prize money this time with the champions getting $1.5 million and the runners-up $750,000 in addition to the prestigious continental trophy.

Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) champions Bashundhara Kings will start their Group D campaign of the AFC Cup Football' 2022 taking on Maziya Sports & Recreation Club of the Maldives on Wednesday. The match will kick-off at 9 pm (local time) at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan (Salt Lake Stadium) in Kolkata. Also read:Bashundhara Kings reach Kolkata to compete in AFC Cup Earlier, two Indian contenders,  ATK Mohun Bagan FC:of Kolkata  will face Gokulam Kerala FC  in the opening Group D match of the AFC Cup at 5 pm local time at the same venue. Last two times BPL champions Bashundhara Kings, which reached Kolkata last Saturday (May 14), to play the group matches of the AFC Cup, will face ATK Mohun Bagan on May 21 and Gokulam Kerala FC on May 24 in their remaining Group D matches. ATK Mohun Bagan of Kolkata qualified for the group stage of the AFC Cup eliminating Dhaka Abahani Limited by 3-1 goal in a play-off match in Kolkata on April 19 last.. A total of 38 leading club teams of Asia, split into 10 groups, will battle for the coveted club crown eyeing on the final on October 22 next. Also read: AFC Cup: Williams guides Mohun Bagan to group stage eliminating Abahani Asia Cup Football, which was introduced in 2004, also offered a substantial prize money this time with the champion team getting USD 1.5 million and the runners-up will get USD 750,000.in addition to prestigious continental trophy.

Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) champions Bashundhara Kings reached Kolkata Saturday (May 14) noon to compete in the Group D match of the AFC Cup Football beginning there on May 18. Bashundhara Kings, which placed in Group D of the AFC Cup with Maziya S&RC of the Maldives, ATK Mohun Bagan of Kolkata and Gokulam FC of Kerala (India), will start their campaign on May 18 taking on Maziya S&RC. Also Read: BPL Football: Bashundhara Kings maintain winning streak The Bangladesh champions Kings will play Kolkata Mohunbagan on May 21 and meet Gokulam FC of Kerala on May 24. Kolkata Mohunbagan reached the group stage of the AFC Cup beating Dhaka Abahani Limited in the play-off match.  

A brilliant hattrick by Australian booter David Williams guided Kolkata Mohun Bagan to qualify for group stage of the AFC Cup' 2022 eliminating Dhaka Abahani by 3-1 goals in the final play-off match the Yuvo Bharati (Salt Lake) Stadium in Kolkata on Tuesday. With the day's feat, ATK Mohun Bagan earned rights to play in the Group D of the AFC Cup main competition alongwith Gokulam Kerala FC (India), Bashundhara Kings (Bangladesh) and Maziya Sports and Recreation Club (Maldives).  It was the 2nd victory for traditional Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan against Dhaka Abahani in 3 meetings  since 2017. Dhaka Abahani also conceded 1-3 goals defeat against Kolkata Mohun Bagan in their away match of the AFC Cup Football in Kolkata in 2017 while their home match against the Mohun Bagan ended in a 1-1 draw in Dhaka in the same year. In the day's match, striker David Williams made a hattrick  scoring three goals in the 6th, 30th and 85th minutes while Russian World Cup playing Costa Rica booter Daniel Colindres netted the face saving goal for six times Bangladesh Premier League champions Dhaka Abahani Limited in the 61st minute. Earlier. the popular sky-blue Dhanmondi outfit Dhaka Abahani got walkover against Club Valencia of the Maldives in their first play-off match of the AFC Cup with the latter withdrawing the team in the last minute due to funds crisis. On other hand, Mohun Bagan cruised past Sri Lanka's, Blue Star 5-0 in the second preliminary round of the 2022 AFC Cup last Tuesday with the Mariners thrashing their opponents courtesy of braces from Joni Kauko, Manvir Singh and a goal from David Williams.

Six-time Bangladesh Premier League champions Dhaka Abahani Limited will meet Indian giants ATK Mohun Bagan of Kolkata in the last and final play-off match of the AFC Cup 2022 at the Yuvo Bharati (Salt Lake) Stadium in Kolkata on Tuesday. The neighbouring titans' battle will kick-off at 7:30 pm Bangladesh time Striker Nabib Newaj Jibon will lead the sky-blue Dhaka Abahani while Pritom Kotal will captain the green-maroon Kolkata Mohun Bagan in Tuesday's vital match. Also read: AFC Cup play-off: Dhaka Abahani to face Mohun Bagan in Kolkata on April 19 The winners of the match will join Gokulam Kerala FC (India), Bashundhara Kings (Bangladesh) and Maziya Sports and Recreation Club (Maldives) in Group D of the AFC Cup main competition. All the matches of Group D will be staged at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata from May 18 to May 24, 2022. In previous two meetings, Dhaka Abahani conceded 1-3 goals defeat against Kolkata Mohun Bagan in their away match of the AFC Cup Football in Kolkata in 2017 while their home match against the same team ended in a 1-1 draw in Dhaka in the same year. Earlier. the popular sky-blue Dhanmondi outfit Dhaka Abahani got a walkover against Club Valencia of the Maldives in their first play-off match of the AFC Cup with the latter withdrawing the team at the last minute due to funds crisis. Also read: 2nd phase of BCL begins on Tuesday Ahead of Tuesday's key match, Abahanis head coach Mario Lemos believes they are capable of beating Mohun Bagan Club on their soil. ATK Mohun Bagan's head coach Juan Ferrando wants to focus on beating Bangladesh-side Abahani Dhaka in the last play-off round match of the 2022 AFC Cup at the Salt Lake Stadium. Mohun Bagan cruised past Sri Lanka's, Blue Star 5-0 in the second preliminary round of the 2022 AFC Cup last Tuesday with the Mariners thrashing their opponents courtesy of braces from Joni Kauko, Manvir Singh and a goal from David Williams. Despite their resounding win last Tuesday, Ferrando reiterated that the playoff game against Dhaka Abahani is like a final and that it is very important for his side to focus on the all-important clash.

Six-time Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) champions Dhaka Abahani Limited will face Indian giant ATK Mohun Bagan in the second play-off match of the AFC Cup on April 19 at Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata. Earlier, the popular sky-blue Dhanmondi outfit got a walkover against Club Valencia of the Maldives in their first play-off match of the AFC Cup, with the latter withdrawing in the last minute due to funds crunch. Club Valencia players were due to arrive here on Sunday night to participate in the AFC Cup play-off match, but they informed the Bangladesh Football Federation and the apex body, Asian Football AFC, of their inability to participate in Tuesday's game. On the other hand, ATK Mohun Bagan of Kolkata smartly qualified for the second and final play-off match crushing Blue Star Sporting Club of Sri Lanka by 5-0 in the first play-off game at Salt Lake Stadium on Tuesday evening. Read: BPL Football: Sk Russel beat Swadhinata KS 2-1 The winners of the second play-off match between Dhaka Abahani Ltd and Mohun Bagan will qualify for the Group D of the AFC Cup, along with Bashundhara Kings of Bangladesh, Gokulam Kerela FC of India and Maziya S&RC of the Maldives.

The ceremonial draw of the AFC Cup 2022 was held on Monday (Jan 17) at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with 39 teams drawn in nine groups of four teams and one group with three teams. The BPL champions Basundhara Kings are in four-team Group D along Gokulam Kerala of India, Maziya SRC of the Maldives and the winners of South Asian play-off match. The matches will be held from May 19-24 at a central venue. READ: AFC U-23 Asian Cup: Bangladesh concede 0-3 goal defeat against Saudi Arabia Bangladesh Federation Cup champions Dhaka Abahani Ltd will also play in the AFC Cup’ 2022 in the play-off stage of preliminary round as the 2nd Bangladesh team. They will play the winners of Valencia of Maldives and Paro FC of Bhutan in their first preliminary round match on April 12. READ: AFC U-23 Asian Cup: Bangladesh to face Saudi Arabia on Tuesday  Bashundhara Kings, which took part in the last AFC Cup, but failed to  overcome the group stage while Dhaka Abahani Ltd reached the zonal semifinal of the AFC Cup as the first Bangladesh team.

Dhaka Abahani Ltd maintained their supremacy by clinching their 2nd consecutive trophy of the season, the Bashundhara Group Federation Cup Football title, beating surprising finalist Rahmatganj MFS by 2-1 goals in the final at the Bir Shreshta Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur here on Sunday. Abahani will now represent Bangladesh in the next AFC Cup.  Daniel Colindres put Abahani ahead in the stoppage time of the first half (45+1) minute (1-0). Also read: Fed Cup Football: Dhaka Abahani, Rahmatganj MFS reach final

Indian champions ATK Mohun Bagan FC emerged Group D champion to qualify for the next-month Inter-Zonal Semifinal of the AFC Cup Football '2021 playing 1-1 draw with Bangladesh champions and 10-man Bashundhara Kings in a group deciding match at the National Football Stadium in Male, Maldives on Tuesday. After the match, Indian super league champions ATK Mohun Bagan clinched group D crown with unbeaten run securing seven points from all the three matches to match to the knock out stage of the AFC Cup  Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) champions Kings finished group runners up, also with unbeaten run and eliminated from meet with five points from three group  encounters. On completion of the Maldives mission, ATK Mohun Bagan will now face either FC Nasaf of Uzbekistan or FC Ahal of Turkmenistan in the Inter-Zone semi-finals on September 22. READ: 2021 SAFF Championship: Bangladesh Seek First Title Since 2003 In the day's vital match, Brazilian midfielder Jonathan Fernandes put Bashundhara Kings ahead in the 28th minute by a sudden shot from danger zone making fool the Mohun Bagan custodian Amrinder Singh and the defenders (1-0). Bashundhara looked to be on the way to a momentous victory when Brazilian midfielder Fernandes put them ahead just before the half-hour mark, but the momentum swung in ATK Mohun Bagan’s as Kings defender jSushanto Tripura was sent off in the dying seconds of the first half. The Bangladesh Premier League champions had one foot in the knockout stage at one stage, but their cause suffered a heavy blow when defender Susanta Tripura was shown a straight red card in the stoppage time (45+3 minute) and forced to play with 10-man in the entire 2nd half. Bashundhara Kings partly dominated the first half to take a 1-0 lead over the Indian champions. But the 10-men Kings failed display their usual game in the 2nd half and conceded a goal to eliminate from the meet. Finally, Australian forward David William came to rescue the Mohun Bagan from danger scoring the match equaliser in the 62nd minute by an angular placing shot from close (1-1). READ: Bangladesh Women's Football Team to Play 2022 Asian Cup Qualifiers in September Bashundhara’s Robinho nearly turned the group on its head when his speculative curling cross-cum-shot effort bounced off the woodwork with six minutes remaining with the frustration of their fans. However, ATK Mohun Bagan held on to claim the crucial one point, becoming the first Indian side since JSW Bengaluru FC in 2018 to advance to the knockout stage. Earlier, Bashundhara Kings made good start beating Maldives champions Maziya Sports & Recreation Club by 2-0 goals and played a goalless with Bengaluru FC on India while Mohun Bagan of Kolkata made a flying start beating Bengaluru FC by 2-0 goals and defeated Maziya S&RC by 3-1 goals, all at the National Football Stadium in Male.