KATHMANDU, Aug 26: Of late, Afghanistan is proving to be a tough opponent for Nepal, be it football or cricket. Nepal on Thursday takes on Afghanistan in the first semifinal of the maiden SAFF U-19 Championship while India locks horns against Bangladesh on the same day at the ANFA Complex ground in Satdobato, Lalitpur.
Nepal has won one out of the last three matches played against Afghanistan in all levels of football since 2013. The national team suffered 1-0 defeat against Afghanistan in the semifinal of SAFF Championship played in Kathmandu two years ago, while the Nepal's U-23 team had gone down 2-0 in AFC U-23 Championship in Iran in March earlier this year. However, the U-16 team had pulled a 1-0 win over Afghanistan a couple of weeks earlier in Bangladesh during the group stage of SAFF U-16 Championship.Given such rivalry, Nepal on Wednesday will be cautious when it meets Afghanistan for a place in the final. "We should not repeat the same mistakes we committed in group stage against Bhutan and Bangladesh," Nepal's coach Bal Gopal Maharjan said at a pre-match conference on Wednesday.
Nepal had finished on top of its group after 3-1 win over Bhutan and 2-1 win over Bangladesh. Afghanistan advanced as a runner up from group B after 3-1 win over Maldives and 2-0 defeat at the hands of India.
After observing the two matches of Afghanistan, Maharjan said, "They are physically tough team to play against. They are equally smart technically and tactically," he said, whose upfront line will be spearheaded by skipper Bimal Gharti Magar and Anjan Bista.
"We must keep the ball possession, play short passes and stick to our game plans, which was absent in the group matches," a cautious Maharjan said, adding that his side was eager to get positive results against the Afghans.
Nepal's captain Bimal stressed on improving the game for better results. "The match against Afghanistan is 50/50. We need to improve our midfield. Though the Afghan is a strong side, we don't feel pressure playing against them."
Echoing the captain, Maharjan said his side won't be under pressure while playing in front of the home crowd at the home ground since they have played at the Dasharath Stadium earlier even before a bigger crowd.
Afghanistan, on the other hand, stressed on need of improving attack in order to break Nepal's defense. "Though Nepal has home crowd and turf advantage we are ready for the challenge. We have also acclimatized with the weather conditions," said Afghan's assistant coach Sayed Rajab Shah Masomi.
Afghanistan will play without the service of first choice keeper Md Nawid Afghan who was sent off for two yellow cards in the match against India. But Sayed insisted that the second choice keeper was equally efficient.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh coach Saiful Bari Titu said that his side must produce its best performance to beat India. "India has composed defense and excellent midfield. However, the players are motivated since we are already into the semifinal. We have some problem in defensive line up but we must cope with them for favorable outcome."
Titu's Indian counterpart, Syed Sabir Pasha, said that team unity and spirit was the strength of his side. "This is one of the two team of the U-19 age group. Thus the boys have something to prove in order to make to the squad of AFC competition. They try to play compact football as a team in defense as well as offence," Pasha told.
He, however, was equally cautious about the opponent. "It is going to be tough and a different match. Bangladesh is a strong side with good tradition of football culture," Pasha summed up.
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