Bangladesh goalkeeper Mile Akter said the team gained lessons despite suffering a 5-0 defeat to tournament favourites and three-time champions DPR Korea in their second AFC Women’s Asian Cup fixture in Sydney on Friday.

The 19-year-old custodian reflected on the experience of facing one of Asia’s strongest sides, stressing that the match helped the team understand areas that need improvement.

“Today (Friday) we played against a hard team,” Mile said after the match.

“After playing against the hard team, we understood where our problems lie. We will work on these in the coming days,” she added.

Mile was not a regular starter in the Bangladesh goal prior to the tournament but was surprisingly named in the starting XI for the opening match against defending champions China, ahead of first-choice goalkeeper Rupna Chakma.

The young goalkeeper impressed with a standout performance in the 2-0 defeat against China and retained her place between the posts for the clash against DPR Korea.

Facing two of Asia’s top-ranked sides in their maiden AFC Women’s Asian Cup campaign has proven to be a stern test for the Tigresses, with both China and DPR Korea sitting nearly 100 places above Bangladesh in the FIFA rankings.

Despite the tough results, the Bangladesh camp views the tournament as a valuable learning opportunity as they gain experience at the continent’s highest level.

Bangladesh will wrap up their Group B campaign against Uzbekistan in Perth on Monday.