Relief sweeps New Radiant upon Dhagandey's return and win

Ali Ashfaq (Dhagendey), who has been away from the pitch for two years due to injury, returned to the field for last night's New Radiant match, with them winning against Buru Sports with a 3-0 score in the Dhiraagu Dhivehi League.

This was an important win for New Radiant to get their form back after being in a recent slump. New Radiant currently sits at third on the league leaderboard with 23 points. Maziya currently sits at 34 points at the top of the leaderboard, with Odi Sports sitting in second with 28 points. Buru Sports sits at fourth with 20 points.

During last night's match, New Radiant took the lead in the 25th minute, with Hassan Raif Ahmed (Hanna) scoring. Captain Ali Fasir (Sentey) passed Raif the ball into the penalty box and shot at goal without giving Buru goalkeeper Hassan Aleef Ibrahim a chance to defend against it as he approached Raif.

Ali Fasir scored the second goal for his team in the 53rd minute. New Radiant's ball landed right at Ali Fasir's feet on the penalty line, with Buru players attempting to defend against it. Ali Fasir proceeded to slot the ball into the bottom corner, with him scoring the third goal just five minutes later.

Ashfaq was subbed onto the field in the 80th minute. The last time he had played in the Galolhu Stadium was in April 2023 for Super United Sports.

He underwent an ACL operation in India last September in order to treat his knee injury that he has been suffering from for over six years. He has taken part in some futsal competitions since recovering. He had also signed a two-year contract with New Radiant and was ready to play in the First Division.

He was also seen on New Radiant's bench for their first two matches in the Dhiraagu Dhivehi Premier League. New Radiant worked to have him be fit to play with a non-surgical option rather than undergo an additional operation. However, he had to undergo the meniscus operation due to the non-surgical option not being successful.

Ashfaq has played some matches at the national and club level while suffering from his injury the last few years. He also played in the 2021 SAFF Championship with the injury. His injury worsened in early 2022. After he played for Valencia in the season opener match, he stopped playing at the club level. He proceeded to only play at the national level that year. He underwent runner's training with coach Nasrullah Ahmed in hopes he would be fit again.

He was successful in doing so, and proceeded to play for Super United Sports (SUS) in 2023. However, he suffered another knee injury while playing in the President's Cup in April.

Ashfaq, now 40 years old, who began his career at the age of 16 at Valencia, is now counting down the final few days of his career. However, he wishes to show quality plays before he retires.