DOHA: It turned out to be a dream too far. The devastation was visible on Sunil Chhetri's face when he applauded the crowd after the game, palms folded in apology. Bengaluru FC gave everything they had, but came up a goal short against Iraq's Air Force Club in the final of the AFC Cup at Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium here on Saturday.
There was scant difference between the teams for most of the game as Bengaluru matched their more fancied opponents blow for blow. But one moment proved to be the difference between the sides, the tournament's top scorer Hammadi Ahmed taking his chance without fail.
For all the emphasis placed on how Bengaluru would handle their opponents' size advantage, it was them who started off playing a more physical game. Cameron Watson, John Johnson and Juanan were regularly outmuscling Air Force forwards. Even Chhetri and CK Vineeth were hassling the midfielders constantly, making life uncomfortable for them.
The opening exchanges were dominated by Air Force Club and Bengaluru had to wait till the 12th minute for their first chance. Rino Anto found Chhetri from the right wing, but Sameh Saeed cleared it away.
The best chance of the first half came in the 40th minute when a brilliant through ball by Hammadi Ahmed released Amjed Radhi behind the Bengaluru defence. Radhi had only the goalkeeper in front and teammate Samed Saeed to his side, but his attempt to cross the ball to the latter was correctly predicted by Ralte, who dived to make the save.
The second half started with a string of Air Force Club attacks. Just five minutes after the restart, Radhi had another golden chance as he received a cross from Sameh and turned brilliantly to shake off his marker. His shot, though, left a lot to be desired as it went well over. Minutes later, Sameh did the same for Hammadi, who failed to get a shot on target.
Bengaluru too had their chances, the pick of them coming in the 55th minute, when Juanan's ball found Chhetri inside the box. The Bengaluru captain pondered for an instant whether to cross or shoot and eventually opted to pull it back for the advancing Eugeneson. The midfielder's shot was blocked, as was Alvaro Rubio's from the rebound.
Coach Alberto Roca decided to change things around, sending on Udanta Singh and Seiminlen Doungel for the rather ineffective duo of Alwyn George and Nishu Kumar. But the tide was soon to turn the other way. Radhi ran into box, cutting in from the left, before poking it on to Hammadi. The Iraq international had scored in every AFC Cup game he started this season and he was in no mood to break that run, beating Ralte with ease.
Seconds later, Air Force Club almost got another one. Emad Majeed managed to get in behind the defence and passed the ball to Radhi, who calmly poked it in. But the referee raised his flag.
At the other end, Bengaluru were struggling to create chances despite the clock ticking down on them. The one who came closest to scoring was Vineeth, who found himself at the end of a Cameron Watson free-kick only a few metres from goal, with three minutes left. His attempted volley got nowhere near the goal. Five minutes of added time indicated a nervy ending, but the Iraqis were able to see it home without incident.
As the Air Force players kissed the ground and unveiled their flags, the chants in the stadium were still for the vanquished. Winning hearts may come nowhere near winning the cup, but Bengaluru could walk out of the ground with heads held high.
