Bangladesh made a dreadful start to their AFC U-17 Asian Cup Qualifiers campaign with a 1-0 defeat against 10-man Cambodia in Phnom Penh on Saturday.

The hosts were down to 10 men following a dangerous tackle on Bangladesh forward Arham Islam in the 25 minute of the match. However, the charges of Saiful Bari Titu failed to make the numerical advantage count as they wasted a handful of opportunities, allowing the opposition to break them down from a counter-attack in the 85th minute of the match.

The Bangladesh team, who recently finished runners-up in the SAFF U-17 Championship, had countless opportunities to take the game by the scruff of the neck. They came close to breaking the deadlock on numerous occasions, but their individualistic display didn't translate into a team effort. There was also lack of imagination for the boys in red and green, whose countless corner kicks were thwarted easily by the Cambodians.

Bangladesh will play their second match on October 23 against Philippines, who thrashed Macau 7-0 in the first match of the group. Afghanistan are the other team in this group.