Kings defeat Abahani in fiery BPL clash

Brazilian forward Robson da Silva scored a brace as holders Bashundhara Kings earned a 3-2 victory over Abahani Limited in an exciting match of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) football at the Bashundhara Sports Complex in Dhaka on Monday, report news agency BSS.

Apart from Robson’s two goals, Gambian forward Nuha Marong scored once for the Kings. Forward Rakib Hossain and Brazilian midfielder Raphael Augusto netted one goal apiece for Abahani Limited, but it wasn’t enough to avoid defeat.

The match was locked 1-1 at the halfway point.

Nuha Marong scored the first goal of the match for Kings in the 20th minute from a free kick. But in the added time of the first half, Rakib restored the parity for Abahani Limited with a sharp finish from inside the box.

After the break, Kings swapped in their main attacking threat Robson and the Brazilian didn’t disappoint.

He scored his first and Kings’ second goal of the match with a fierce right footed shot in the 71st minute. He used the finesse to score his second goal, chipping the ball over the keeper’s head in the 91st minute to make the score 3-1.

Abahani got a penalty in the final minute of the match and Raphael Augusto converted from the spot to reduce the margin of defeat.

Intensity was high from the start in the game. Players from both teams got into a tussle in the 14th minute, which halted the match for three minutes.

Although Kings have already sealed the league title and Abahani are certain to finish second in the league, the match didn’t feel like a dead rubber game. Both teams were playing for bragging rights and gave their all on the field.

Kings, who earlier confirmed their hat-trick crown beating Saif Sporting Club 2-0, raised their tally to 54 points from 21 matches while Abahani Limited remained at their previous credit of 44 points from the same number of matches.

Kings and Abahani Limited will play their last matches of the league respectively against Lieutenant Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club and Uttar Baridhara Club respectively on 31 July.