Pakistan on Wednesday defeated Afghanistan 2-0 in the final of the Diamond Jubilee International Football Tournament at the National Football Stadium in Male to claim the title.
The win meant Pakistan triumphed in their first men’s international final since the 1991 South Asian Games where they defeated the Maldives 2-0.
Furthermore, the Diamond Jubilee International Football Tournament glory marked Pakistan’s first independent title since sharing the Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament crown with India in 1952, which was played in the round-robin format.
The Green Shirts got off to a lively start at the summit as they dominated possession and were finally rewarded in the 24th minute when striker Dost scored a sensational goal through a bicycle kick after midfielder Otis Khan miscued a kick just inside the box which lobbed perfectly to the striker.
After Pakistan’s early attack, Afghanistan made a desperate effort to equalize in the first half, which ended 1-0 in favor of the green shirts.
The second half followed the same pattern as Afghanistan were denied the equalizer despite Pakistan making several substitutions and the scoreboard remained intact at 1–0 in their favor until the end of normal time.
Pakistan Team:
Goalkeepers: Saqib Hanif, Yousuf Butt and Hassan Ali.
Defenders: Abdullah Iqbal, Mohammad Fazal, Abdullah Shah, Easah Suliman, Mohib Afridi, Mamoon Moosa, Ali Niazi and Haris Zeb.
Midfielders: Adil Nabi, Rahis Nabi, Alamgir Ghazi, Hayyan Khattak, Ali Agha and Otis Khan.
Forwards: Shayak Dost, Umer Nawaz, Ali Shah, Ali Khan, Samad Arshad and Harun Hamid.
