Shayek Dost’s stunning overhead kick and Harun Hamid’s solo strike late on helped Pakistan end a 74-year wait for a football tournament title as they beat Afghanistan 1-0 in the final of the Diamond Jubilee International Football Tournament in Male on Wednesday.
In front of fans waving the national flag and chanting “Pakistan, Pakistan”, an airborne Shayek showed supreme athleticism to score the opening goal before Harun sealed victory deep in stoppage time, marking it the first time ever that Pakistan have won the final of a stand-alone football tournament.
The Shaheens’ previous tournament triumph, way back in 1952 at the Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament, was decided on a league basis that saw them share the trophy with India.
The last time that Pakistan, who have won gold four times at the South Asian Games, had reached a final of a tournament was back in 1962 at the Merdeka Cup.
Afghanistan, who Pakistan had beaten 2-0 in their last round-robin encounter to finish top of the standings, made a strong start but the Shaheens regrouped.
Otis Khan was menacing down the left and after he won a free-kick, Pakistan took the lead in the 24th minute. Afghanistan failed to clear and the ball was then crossed in from the right with Otis’ miskick reaching Shayek on the bounce and thestriker acrobatically found the back of the net.
The goal gave Pakistan the opportunity to stamp their authority on the proceedings and although Afghanistan tried to come back and struck the crossbar in first half injury time, they went into the interval with the lead intact.
Pakistan, who were unbeaten in their run to the final, began the second half with purpose and Adil Nabi struck the bar almost immediately after the restart.
Nolberto Solano’s charges soon turned on the style with some intricate passing moves as fresh legs were introduced but the contest got increasingly fraught as the clock winded down.
Pakistan had a clear cut chance to put the game to bed with nine minutes left but Ali Shah shot straight at the goalkeeper.
At the other end, goalkeeper Saqib Hanif led a watertight defence and Pakistan closed out a historic victory when Harun Hamid struck late on.
The winger, on as a substitute, went one way and then the other to leave an Afghanistan defender on the floor before tucking in off the post.
It was the cue for Pakistan’s celebrations to begin as the team won a third game in a row to seal the title.
PFF PRESIDENT SYED MOHSEN GILANI CONGRATULATES NATION, DECLARES VICTORY HIGH POINT OF HIS TENURE
“When I took over as President of the Pakistan Football Federation, I had vowed we would do things that had never been done before. First, it was our women’s national team at the FIFA Series and now it is our men’s national team.
“From not having an elected federation for so many years to winning our first final at a stand-alone football tournament, we have come a long way in the space of one year, and this is another step in our journey to change the landscape of Pakistan football.
“This is the day that Pakistan football has announced itself to the world that it has the desire, the courage and the will to persevere and ultimately deliver on the international stage.
“To move forward, you always need a starting point and this triumph for men’s national team will hopefully be exactly that. This is the highest point of my tenure so far and it will herald a new beginning as we pledge to rewrite the history of the sport in Pakistan.
“To the men who have created history, to everyone who has contributed to it, we will continue to provide you with the tools to ensure you raise Pakistan’s flag at the world stage. This is just the start.”