KATHMANDU, Sept 20: Nepal's dream of qualifying for the AFC U-16 Championship finals as group winner was dealt a big blow after its 3-1 defeat by Oman in the last group-stage match of the Qualifiers played at the Dolen Omurzakov Stadium in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on Sunday.
The result left Nepal in second position despite earning equal six points to that of Oman on the basis of head-to-head record. Nepal can further slip to the third position if Jordan, which is scheduled to play its last group match late Sunday, if it beats host Kyrgyzstan.In such scenario, Nepal's slim hope of making into the next round as the best runner-up team among all 11 groups will also be dashed. In case Jordan beats Kyrgyzstan, Oman, Nepal and Jordan will all have six points each and the goal difference will be applied for determining the top positions in the standings. Oman and Jordan will both have better goal differences than Nepal. Oman has two, Nepal one and Jordan will have one plus as many number of goal margin if it beats Kyrgyzstan. Besides, all the group winners, the best four runners-up from among all the groups will also secure place for the finals to be held in India next year.
Earlier, Nepal had defeated Jordan 2-1 and Kyrgyzstan 4-2, while Oman beat Kyrgyzstan 2-0 but lost to Jordan by 2-0.
In Sunday's match, Thamir Al Zaabi gave Oman the lead in the 11th minute. Mohamed Khalifa Al Khamisi doubled the tally in the 44th minute.
Prezen Tamang, who replaced Rejin Subba in the 81st minute, scored a goal in the 88th minute to cut the deficit and rekindle some hope.
But Mohammed Obaid Al-Qaidi, a replacement of Naji Fayal Al Ghelani in the 79th minute, ensured Oman's victory in the stoppage time.
Nepal's coach Upendra Man Singh lamented that his side failed to play as per the strategy. "Oman is a strong team and the boys failed to play as per the game plan," said Singh, adding that his team even failed to match the performance of the first two matches.
Singh's counterpart Saif Al Sabahi expressed satisfaction with his side's performance. "We were under pressure after losing to Jordan. We had seen Nepal play and they were very fast. We had planned to stop Nepal from winning and achieved that," he said.
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