Kings to dissect AFC Cup failure

Bashundhara Kings want to assess what went wrong in their AFC Cup qualifiers campaign, which came to an end on Monday under controversial circumstances, and decide their plan of action to fix their woes in international competitions.

"Regardless of whatever happened, however our players performed and the calls the referee made, at the end of the day the reality is that we could not qualify," the Kings' president Imrul Hasan told the Daily Star yesterday.

"There are a lot of regrets, but now we want to look forward," he added.

Kings needed just one point from their final Group D match against Odisha FC in Bhubaneshwar to qualify for their maiden inter-zonal play-off semifinal.

But after their Uzbekistani midfielder Asror Gafurov was controversially shown a direct red card for a foul he committed near the centre line at the halfway point of the match, Kings lost their grip in the contest, suffered a second-half goal and lost the match 1-0.

This defeat cost Kings a chance to establish themselves among the big clubs in the South Asian region, which has been one of their main goals from the outset.

Under the guidance of Spanish coach Oscar Bruzon, the star-studded Kings are an unstoppable juggernaut in the domestic circuit, with four league titles and a couple of Federation Cup and Independence Cup titles each since joining the top-flight in the 2018-19 season.

However, success at AFC Cup remained elusive for Kings as they are yet to qualify for the knockout stage in four attempts so far.

Interestingly, this was the second time the Kings stumbled in the final hurdle to a AFC Cup knockout berth. In 2021, they needed a win over ATK Mohun Bagan in their final game but lost the match after their defender Sushanta Tripura was given marching orders in the stoppage time of the first half.

After Monday's match, Bruzon implored the AFC to investigate the referee's actions ''for the sake of football'.

However, the Kings president first wanted to hear the accounts of the players and the coach before taking an official step.

"We want to first talk to everyone, go through the report and then make the decision."