Sri Lanka held onto a 0-0 draw against Lithuania in an international friendly held today (08th July) at the Racecourse International Stadium, which marked Sri Lanka’s return to the International Football arena after almost two years.
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As expected it was Lithuania who dominated the game from the very onset as they held onto possession in the opposition half and threatened to take the lead.
However, Sri Lankan defense lead by the skipper Subash Madushan and goalkeeper Sujan Perera despite looking a bit shaky at times did enough to keep the Lithuanian attackers at bay.
Lithuania were awarded a free-kick in the 16th minute just outside the box, but were unable capitalize on it as the shot went sailing miles over the posts. Sri Lanka hardly had any possession in the opposition half and whenever they did either their poor passing or loose ball controlling gifted opposition the ball.
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However, Sri Lanka caught the visitors on the counter in the 34th minute as a through ball from Mohamed Fazal found Kavindu Ishan open in the box, but he could only send in a cross after failing to take a shot. The cross was safely cleared away by the Lithuanian defense.
Lithuania looked dangerous from both the flanks creating a plethora of goal scoring opportunities, but couldn’t penetrate through the Sri Lankan defense due to their lack of quality in the final third.
Half Time – Sri Lanka 0 – 0 Lithuania
Lithuania continued their momentum from the first half with some promising moves which they again couldn’t convert due to poor finishing and the firm Sri Lankan defense.
Their best chance in the second half perhaps came in the 57th minute where a corner found one of their attackers unmarked, but he could only head it over the posts.
Sri Lanka changed their gears midway through the second half and looked a bit more propitious in attack with the inclusion of U19 vice-captain Asela Madushan, who showed temperament beyond his age while troubling the defense with his raw pace.
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A couple of threatening counter attacks almost paved the way for a goal. They fancied their chances from out of the box on both the instances; but the first from Ishan went over the bar while the second lacked power to trouble the Lithuanian goal keeper Deividas Mikelionis.
Sri Lanka again caught the Lithuanians on the break in the 80th minute where substitute Sasanka Dilhara’s cross found Zarwan Johar at the tip of the box, but he could only head it into the hands of the goalkeeper.
The game concluded in a draw with both the teams failing to create any stark goal scoring opportunity in the dying minutes of the game. For Sri Lanka, debutant Duckson Piuslas had a stellar game at center-back and Afeel Mohamed looked solid in his uncustomary midfield role.
Full Time – Sri Lanka 0 – 0 Lithuania
ThePapare.com Player of the Match – Duckson Piuslas
