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2009 SAFF Cup Special: Know Your Opponents - Team Sri Lanka
Continuing with our SAFF Cup special series, in which we profile each of the other seven teams in the competition, Goal.com's Amoy Ghoshal tells you about 1995 champions Sri Lanka..
29-Nov-2009 5:10:04 PM
FIFA Ranking: 154
Best Result In SAFF Cup: Champions In 1995
Result In Last SAFF Cup: Semi Finalists
History:
Sri Lanka played their first ever international under the name of Ceylon in 1952 but have never been able to establish themselves at either world or continental level. They have been part of FIFA as Sri Lanka since 1972 but football has never been the number one sport in the country, and has always stayed in the shadow of the country’s cricket and rugby teams. However they have been one of the most consistent teams in the South Asian football arena. They have won the SAFF Cup once back in 1995 when the tournament was held in their country and have also been semi finalists twice. Till 2003, they were the only country other than India to win the SAFF Cup. 2006 has been one of their most successful years as they finished runner up at both the South Asian Games and the AFC Challenge Cup. The ‘Brave Reds’ finished at the bottom of the round robin standings in the 2009 Nehru Cup but produced one of the shocks of the tournament by beating higher ranked Lebanon 4-3.
Current Team:
The squad that came for the Nehru Cup mostly consisted of youngsters as the Lankans were using the tournament to prepare for the 2009 SAFF Cup. They were missing some seniors players including key striker Kasun Jayasuriya so we are likely to see a much experienced team in this tournament. Their game is mainly about short and quick ground passing in which skipper Chathura Maduranga is the playmaker from the middle of the park. Strikers Jayasuriya and Ediri Channa can be difficult to deal with on their day while the versatile Issadeen has already shown his capabilities by scoring a hat-trick against Lebanon despite playing in an unfamiliar forward position. They do look a little light weight at defence but Hettiarachchi is a talented defender and the Lankans depend heavily on him, so much so that coach Sampatha Pereira cited his absence due to suspension as one of the big reasons for losing 0-4 against Syria in the Nehru Cup. Sri Lanka have a real weakness in defending crosses but can be very dangerous on the break so one can expect goals both for and against when they are in action.
Key Player:
Chathura Maduranga – The Sri Lankan captain is their midfield maestro and probably the backbone of the team. He was Sri Lanka’s best player in the Nehru Cup and will be aiming to be equally influential in this tournament also.
The Group:
Sri Lanka would be happy to avoid defending champions Maldives, to whom they lost in last edition’s semi and that too in front of their home crowd. Their game against hosts Bangladesh is in the last round of matches so they would be hoping to go into that match having already ensured passage to the last four by getting adequate results against Pakistan and Bhutan.
Verdict:
Sri Lanka have taken a lot of preparation for this tournament and are expected to go past the group stages at least. But beating either Maldives or India could be a daunting task for them.
Amoy Ghoshal
Best Result In SAFF Cup: Champions In 1995
Result In Last SAFF Cup: Semi Finalists
History:
Sri Lanka played their first ever international under the name of Ceylon in 1952 but have never been able to establish themselves at either world or continental level. They have been part of FIFA as Sri Lanka since 1972 but football has never been the number one sport in the country, and has always stayed in the shadow of the country’s cricket and rugby teams. However they have been one of the most consistent teams in the South Asian football arena. They have won the SAFF Cup once back in 1995 when the tournament was held in their country and have also been semi finalists twice. Till 2003, they were the only country other than India to win the SAFF Cup. 2006 has been one of their most successful years as they finished runner up at both the South Asian Games and the AFC Challenge Cup. The ‘Brave Reds’ finished at the bottom of the round robin standings in the 2009 Nehru Cup but produced one of the shocks of the tournament by beating higher ranked Lebanon 4-3.
Current Team:
The squad that came for the Nehru Cup mostly consisted of youngsters as the Lankans were using the tournament to prepare for the 2009 SAFF Cup. They were missing some seniors players including key striker Kasun Jayasuriya so we are likely to see a much experienced team in this tournament. Their game is mainly about short and quick ground passing in which skipper Chathura Maduranga is the playmaker from the middle of the park. Strikers Jayasuriya and Ediri Channa can be difficult to deal with on their day while the versatile Issadeen has already shown his capabilities by scoring a hat-trick against Lebanon despite playing in an unfamiliar forward position. They do look a little light weight at defence but Hettiarachchi is a talented defender and the Lankans depend heavily on him, so much so that coach Sampatha Pereira cited his absence due to suspension as one of the big reasons for losing 0-4 against Syria in the Nehru Cup. Sri Lanka have a real weakness in defending crosses but can be very dangerous on the break so one can expect goals both for and against when they are in action.
Key Player:
Chathura Maduranga – The Sri Lankan captain is their midfield maestro and probably the backbone of the team. He was Sri Lanka’s best player in the Nehru Cup and will be aiming to be equally influential in this tournament also.
The Group:
Sri Lanka would be happy to avoid defending champions Maldives, to whom they lost in last edition’s semi and that too in front of their home crowd. Their game against hosts Bangladesh is in the last round of matches so they would be hoping to go into that match having already ensured passage to the last four by getting adequate results against Pakistan and Bhutan.
Verdict:
Sri Lanka have taken a lot of preparation for this tournament and are expected to go past the group stages at least. But beating either Maldives or India could be a daunting task for them.
Amoy Ghoshal
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