Emmanuel Sunday led Bashundhara Kings into the group stage of the AFC Challenge League by securing a 1-0 victory over Syria's Al-Karamah SC in their preliminary round match at the Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium in Qatar on Tuesday night.
The Nigerian striker, who joined Kings from Mohammedan Sporting Club, scored the decisive goal in the sixth minute.
Kings, who finished third in the Bangladesh Premier League last season, gained the opportunity to compete in the Challenge League after champions MSC failed to meet the AFC criteria.
After securing qualification, Kings will now look forward to the group stage draw scheduled for August 28.
Centre-back Topu Barman hailed his team for executing their plans and pledged support for the upcoming stage.
鈥業 hope that all of you are proud of us. We are happy to be able to execute our plans. Hopefully you will keep supporting us鈥hich is very, very important,鈥� said Topu after the match at the Bangladesh Embassy in Qatar on Wednesday.
Kings started strongly against the Syrian League Champions and took the lead early in the game when forward Sunday displayed creativity by controlling Emmanuel Tony鈥檚 shot and backheeling the ball into the net after a corner kick.
Al-Karamah had superior ball possession but were limited to attempts in the first half. Kings nearly doubled the lead three minutes before the break, but midfielder Raphael Augusto's shot went straight into the goalkeeper鈥檚 hand.
Sunday continued to trouble the Syrian side after the break, combining well with Brazilian forward Dorielton Gomes to create space in the box in the 52nd minute, but could only send his shot wide of the mark.
Al-Karamah also created several chances but were unable to break down Kings' solid defence. Goalkeeper Mehedi Hasan Srabon also made a couple of fine saves.
King鈥檚 new signing from Sunderland U-21 team, Cuba Mitchell, also made his first appearance for the club, coming off the bench in the second half.
Meanwhile, the other participating team from Bangladesh, Abahani Limited, failed to progress to the group stage after losing 2-0 to FC Muras United of Kyrgyzstan at the National Stadium in Dhaka on the same day.
Nine winners from the 18 teams in the preliminary round, along with eight sides with direct entry and three eliminated teams from the AFC Champions League Two Preliminary Stage, will compete in the 20-team group stage of the competition.
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