Thiruvananthapuram: Sri Lanka struck in the final minute of the added injury time through Mohammed Rifnas to beat Nepal 1-0 and put one foot in the semi-finals of the South Asian Football Federation Championships here on Wednesday.
Rifnas capitalised on a defensive lapse in the final minute (90+4) of the added time to seal the win for Sri Lanka in the inaugural match of the championships.
The last man in the Nepal defence could not hold the ball and Rifnas emerged from behind to calmly shoot it straight into the net to give Sri Lanka a hard fought win in the Group A match at the Greenfield Stadium at Kariavattom here.
With Group A reduced to just three teams after Pakistan pulled out of the tournament in the last minute, Sri Lanka now have a good chance to qualify for the semi-finals.
Sri Lanka take on hosts India on December 25 in their last group match.
The match was dominated by Nepal with chances coming their way but they failed to capitalise on them. Instead, they lost the match due to a defensive lapse in the end.
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