Shahrukh Sohail, Chief Editor, Kathmandu
While the 1-1 draw with Nepal might be seen as a decent result, truth is that Pakistan were well on their way to a win and only lost out due to a dubious goal in injury time during which goalkeeper Yousuf Butt was fouled.
Starting the game amidst the 20,000 plus roaring fans in the Darasath Rangasala Stadium, the pressure to perform was clearly on the Shaheens.
However, the crowd went quiet after Fremad Amager’s Hassan Bashir found the back of the net via a Nepali clearance.
Just as the players prostrated to celebrate the strike one could feel that this was Pakistan’s night.
And for the most part it was, at least in defence.
Zesh Rehman, who has been criticized heavily in the Pakistani media, shut up his critics for good. The former Fulham star was at the peak of his powers and his brilliant man-marking, physical game and calm use of sliding tackles meant that Nepal struggled to break down the defence despite going out for attack after attack.
Skipper Samar Ishaq was lambasted for his poor showing against India, but his mature performance today spared Pakistan 2-3 goals which the Gorkhalis would have surely scored.
In recent times, Pakistani keepers have been responsible for some poor showings, but Yousuf Butt changed all that today with a performance to rival any top South-Asian shot-stopper.
Butt commanded his box, made crunching tackles when needed and above all produced world-class saves to deny the hosts amidst a noisy, hostile crowd.
Saddam Hussain who has traditionally played on the wing for Pakistan showed his class with a terrific outing and kept it simple while being solid in defensive duties.
Mohammad Adil had an off game by his standards, while Riaz has potential that certainly needs grooming. Wing-backs Faisal Iqbal and Mohammad Ahmed almost got the job done, only to see 15-year-old Bimal Magar scored in injury time.
Hassan Bashir of course proved to be the marksman and is truly Pakistan’s number one source for goals. His inclusion and perhaps the return of his strike-partner Mohammad Ali could really take the Shaheens to a new level.
All in all, the game proved that Pakistan are a vastly improved side in terms of approach and tactics under coaches Shahzad Anwar and Mohammad Al-Shamlan and their sudden transition will only get better as times goes on.
I disagree about Zesh and Samar. There were too many cock-ups by the defenders today. Very shaky defending at times. Yes, they made some excellent stops, but we were lucky not to have lost by 2 or 3 goals. Faisal Iqbal was also lacking today. The only consistent defender was Muhammad Ahmed. Overall, it was decent defending, but the critics can find plenty to criticize about their performance today.
However, the defence did a good job of moving the ball around when Pakistan had possession. They need to improve the accuracy of their passes though.
Most of the players did not play to the same level as they did against India.
Hassan Bashir had an excellent strike for the goal. But he missed a great opportunity to put the game away for good when he had an open net. He should have taken an extra second or two to get his body properly positioned for the shot, or perhaps even tried to go one on one with the keeper. Other than that he was great.
Muhammad Riaz was not nearly as effective in midfield as against India. Was very lightweight defensively. He should be used as a substitute and Yaqub or Afridi should be given the start.
Saddam played well today in the defensive midfield role, but wasted several passes. I feel that he is a stronger and more effective player on the wing.
Adnan was a stabilizing force in midfield as usual.
Kaleem had an off game on the left wing. He had performed very well against India in the center of midfield, and was played out of position today. Should be used as a central midfielder or striker.
Adil was decent today, but not as good as against India.
Yusuf was excellent of course.
Ultimately this was a coaching failure. The lineup was fine, but the formation was not. Pakistan was essentially playing a defensive 4-5-1 formation, whereas a standard 4-4-2 formation would have resulted in greater pressure on the Nepalese defence, resulting in less pressure on the Pakistani defence. Players like Kaleem, Riaz, and Saddam were played out of position. Substitutions should have been made earlier and all 3 substitutions should have been used. Zia was a good substitution, but should have been brought on earlier. Yaqub should have been brought in instead of Ahsanullah. Faisal Iqbal or Kaleem should have been removed mid-way through the second half as well.
Nepal were a much tougher team than India, but Pakistan gave them too much opportunity by playing a defensive game.
Bangladesh is a defensively strong team. Their midfield game is also very good. But their front line is weak. Pakistan must keep a clean sheet against them, and using an attacking formation in order to win by at least two goals. The rest depends on the result of the Nepal-India match.
Yaqub should be given the start in place of Faisal Iqbal. Samar is untouchable, otherwise he should be replaced by Kamran. Yasir Afridi and Adnan should be the central midfield partnership, with Kaleem partnering Hassan Bashir up front. Saddam and Adil on the wings.
yes Zesh did have a great game so did Yousuf Butt
Pakistan out from Saaf Football. Pakistan 2 Bangladesh 1.
Perhaps Yaqoob Butt is nursing an injury-that could be the only plausible reason for his absence, because he has been a consistent performer in defense so far in his brief international career. And although Hassan Bashir scored, he also missed a sitter, hence he needs to be hungrier for more goals. Pakistan should go with a 4-3-3 formation against Bangladesh and attack them from the beginning, with Adnan Ahmed playing the role of a deep lying playmaker in the mold of Andrea Pirlo. We can still win this tournament and we will inshAllah!
Yousuf Butt is the best thing that we got in this tournament. In previous matches he played he conceded goals but now he is better. He is technically better than our local players and he is quite young. He will be a legend for Pakistan Football Team.
Pakistan needs to focus till the end and improve its goal scoring chances. Getting to Semi-final looks tough for Pakistan as wining against Bangladesh is tough ask and result also depends upon India-Nepal match.