Sri Lanka faces Turkmenistan in Asia qualifiers

By Susil Premalal

Sri Lanka’s national football team is set to take on Turkmenistan, a higher-ranked side according to FIFA, in the first leg of the AFC Asia Cup 2027 qualifiers at 3:30 pm today at the Race Course Ground, Colombo. 

Sri Lanka captain Sujan Perera stated that although Turkmenistan is a strong team, his side is fully prepared to meet the challenge for a positive result.

Sri Lanka and Turkmenistan are part of Group D, along with Thailand and Chinese Taipei. Current FIFA rankings place Turkmenistan at 138th and Sri Lanka at 196th.

Turkmenistan has already won both its group matches, earning six points, while Sri Lanka and Thailand have won one match each.  Sri Lanka has three points and currently sitting in second place in the group. Chinese Taipei has yet to register a victory.

To progress to the final round of the qualifiers, Sri Lanka must defeat Turkmenistan in both legs. In prior matches, Sri Lanka beat Chinese Taipei 3-1 and lost to Thailand 0-1, while Turkmenistan secured wins over Chinese Taipei 2-1 and Thailand 3-1.

Sujan Perera noted that the team has analyzed previous shortcomings from competitions such as the South Asian Super Cup and aims to correct them in today’s match.

This year, Sri Lanka has played six international matches, winning three, losing two, and drawing one. The second leg will take place on October 14 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.