Lowly Bhutan’s dream debut in WCup qualifiers
Print Edition
THE tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, the lowest-ranked team in international football, enjoyed a dream debut in the World Cup qualifiers on Thursday by recording a shock 1-0 away victory over Sri Lanka.
Tshering Dorji scored the only goal in the 81st minute at Colombo’s Sugathadasa Stadium, stunning the vast majority of the 3,500-strong crowd who had been expecting the hosts to swat aside the bottom-ranked visitors.
The winner came as Bhutan launched a counter attack after a sustained period of Sri Lankan pressure, with skipper Karma Shedrup Tshering passing to Dorji who slotted home calmly from inside the penalty box.
Ahead of the match, Sri Lanka was ranked 174 in FIFA’s world rankings while Bhutan had the dubious honor of propping up the 209 league of nations table after only ever winning three matches in its history.
But Bhutan, which normally plays against a backdrop of snowy Himalayan peaks, reaped the benefits of acclimatizing in the build-up at a training camp in Thailand and coped well with the humid conditions.
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