After losing the opening match 2-0 against Palestine on Thursday, Nepal now has two matches to play in group stage -- against the Maldives and Turkmenistan. [break]
Among these two opponents the Maldives is considered a relatively easy opponent. Similarly, Nepal would be an easy opponent for the Maldives than any other team of the group.
"We will play every match for win and our target while playing with the Maldives isn´t any different," Nepal´s coach Graham Roberts had said during the post match conference on Thursday.
Not only Nepal, the Maldives also lost its first match 3-1 against Turkmenistan and will aim to beat the host.
A look at the past records since 1984 shows that Nepal has played 11 international matches against the Maldives. Of them, Nepal lost four, won three and played draw in four matches.
The last time Nepal met the Maldives was during the SAFF Championship some four months ago in India. The match had finished in a 1-1 draw.
The match will also be an opportunity for Nepali team to achieve victory over the Maldives which has not defeated the latter since 1999. The last time Nepal defeated the Maldives was during Eighth SAF Games in Kathmandu.
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