Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Male: Kuwait SC denied VB Addu a memorable victory in the AFC Cup as the 2009 champions came from two goals down to hold the Maldivian side to a 2-2 draw at the National Stadium in Male on Wednesday.
After Kuwait SC had missed a penalty, the home side surged ahead with goals by Liberian striker Charles Wright and Shamweel Qasim.
But the Kuwaiti side continued to press and Abdulhadi Khudhair pulled a goal back before Malian midfielder Lassana Fane rescued a point with an equaliser in stoppage time.
The result leaves both teams still stuck to the bottom of Group C with one point each after two games.
Al Kuwait had a glorious opportunity to open the scoring after 27 minutes when they were awarded a penalty after goalkeeper Abdulla Ziyazan brought down Khudhair in the box. But Brazilian striker Rogerio wasted the chance, firing the spot kick against the woodwork.
Encouraged by that let-off, VB took the lead six minutes later. Sierra Leone striker Abu Desmond Mansaray played a superb pass to Wright and the Liberian fired home his first goal for the club.
Qasim extended their advantage eight minutes into the second half with a powerful drive into the top right corner of the net.
However, Khudhair reduced the deficit in the 72nd minute after running on to a through pass and chipping the ball past Ziyazan.
And the visitors’ late pressure finally told when Fane fired home a loose ball in a crowded penalty box in added time to give his side a share of the points.
It was Kuwait SC’s third consecutive draw under Mohamed Abdullah, who took charge of the club on an interim basis following the dismissal of Croatian coach Dragan Talajic two weeks ago.
But despite their late escape, Abdullah felt that his side had deserved three points.
“Sometimes in football there is injustice. We were very unlucky. We controlled the game and played really well in both the halves. We got around 10 chances in the first half and numerous in the second. They got two chances and they utilised them,” he said.
“Our players worked hard and it was a good performance by them. We just have to convert it to goals.”
VB Addu coach Bahtiyar Can Vanli was unhappy that his players had switched off in the final 10 minutes of the game.
“I am disappointed that we lost two important points. We controlled the game and played well till the 80th minute but after that it was disappointing,” said the Turk.
“Our players have to learn that a game cannot be won after playing 80 minutes. They need to play the 90 minutes to win the game. Our players went behind the ball and played in our half in the last 10 minutes. That’s not my instruction at all. We let them build the pressure on us.”