Abahani's Diabate sinks old club Mohammedan

Malian forward Souleymane Diabate struck against his former club to deliver a crucial win for Abahani, who came from behind to beat archrivals Mohammedan 2-1 in a Bangladesh Football League clash at the Shaheed Dhirendranath Datta Stadium in Cumilla on Friday.

The victory -- Abahani’s sixth in 12 matches -- helped the six-time champions close the gap on league leaders Bashundhara Kings to just two points, although the leaders have a game in hand.

The win also ended Abahani’s six-match winless run against Mohammedan in the league, stretching over four years since their last victory -- a 2-0 result in January 2023. However, Abahani had beaten their rivals in last year’s Federation Cup.

The Dhaka derby carried high stakes for both sides. Abahani were eager to avenge their 3-2 defeat in the season’s first meeting and keep their title hopes alive, while Mohammedan needed a win to climb the 10-team table. Instead, their fifth defeat saw the defending champions slip to seventh with just 11 points from 12 matches.

Mohammedan made a dream start, stunning Abahani in the third minute when Uzbek midfielder Muzzafarov scored directly from a corner.

Abahani responded strongly and equalised in the 17th minute. Forward Mirajul Islam, after initially miscontrolling a chance moments earlier, made amends by latching onto a through pass from Nigerian Emeka Ogbuh, turning sharply and firing a powerful shot past goalkeeper Sujan Hossain.

Abahani continued to press and should have taken the lead before the break, but Emeka missed an open-net chance, while defender Shakil Ahmed also failed to capitalise in the 39th minute after Sujan had rushed off his line.

After the restart, Abahani maintained their attacking momentum. Their persistence paid off in the 66th minute when Emeka surged past three defenders and set up Diabate, who turned and finished clinically inside the box, leaving substitute goalkeeper Sakib Al Hasan with no chance.

Abahani created further opportunities, with Sheikh Morsalin firing off target in the 81st minute with only the goalkeeper to beat. Mohammedan, however, pushed hard in the closing stages and fashioned several chances during the 10 minutes of added time but failed to convert.

In other matches, at the Shaheed Miraj-Tapan Stadium in Manikganj, Brothers Union beat Fakirerpool Young Men’s Club 2-0, thanks to a brace from Pakistani midfielder Shayak Dost, who scored in the 54th and 83rd minutes to take his side to 13 points from 12 matches.

At the Shaheed Barkat Stadium in Gazipur, 10-man PWD shocked Rahmatganj 2-0 to climb out of the relegation zone. Russian forward Marat Devassa Tareck opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the seventh minute, before Rahmatganj midfielder Rajon Hawlader scored an own goal in the 88th minute, condemning his team to their fourth defeat in 12 matches.