Ever since goalkeeper Shahidul Alam Sohel's fumble in Nilphamari condemned Bangladesh to a 1-0

defeat against Sri Lanka in a FIFA friendly match, the custodian’s selection in the starting eleven has been in question.

However despite the concerns, Ashrafiil Islam Rana, who performed well in the Asian Games, was overlooked for the SAFF Suzuki Cup from the first game against Bhutan.

English coach Jamie Day opted to stick with Sohel due to his larger physique and the keeper repaid that faith with two consecutive clean sheets against Bhutan and Pakistan.

However, the lad from Chittagong made a big mistake in a crucial match to sink Bangladesh when they most needed him to stand tall.

It was not the first time that Sohel has made a mistake in an international match. He was caught out of position in the aforementioned friendly as Sri Lanka striker Muhammad Fazle struck the decisive goal from 35 yards out just 10 days ago.

Sohel was also the man who sunk Bangladesh in the 2011 SAFF Championship in Delhi when he misjudged a free-kid< and he

was also culpable for Abahani's defeat to Bengaluru FC in the AFC Cup, where he made another fumble.

However, Day was rather forgiving of his goalkeeper and said that he was proud of his boys despite being eliminated from the group stages by virtue ofgoal difference.

" It was a simple catch for Sohel but he could not do it and that can happen in a match. It might have had an impact on the match. You are all telling me about today's mistake but he did play fantastically against Pakistan and kept a clean sheet in two matches," Day said at the post-match press conference.

Asked why Ashraful Islam Rana was not considered instead of Sohel, Day said: "Rana also made a mistake against Thailand in the Asian Games and that was also part of the game.

"However, I'm really disappointed that we couldn't confirm the semifinals after two wins. We controlled the game but conceded a silly goal and it can happen," Day continued.

"Still I am proud of the boys for what they did over the past 16 weeks. We have had massive improvement in this period as we made history by reaching the knockout stage of the Asian Games and posted back-to-back wins after 10 years [Actually 5 years]. Let's speak of positives instead of the negatives," concluded Day.