Anant Tamang can write a new history. If Lalitpur City FC wins the Nepal Super League (NSL) on Saturday. Lalitpur also won the title in the second season under his leadership. This time too he is the captain. Anant had earlier also won the Shahid Smarak League 'A' Division from Church Boys. Maybe, some formula to win the league with these Nepalese defenders. Is there really such a formula?

No, this is not even possible with the personal performance of anyone. In my experience, the biggest thing is team unity, proper management to handle the team,” says Anant. According to the experience of many, if there is one franchise team in NSL that has been managed really well, it is Lalitpur. So will this team win the title this time? At least on paper, the defending champion team is stronger. 

"But in football, it is not necessary for a good team to win," says coach Simon Grayson of Lalitpur, "the main thing is to try your best to win the title." Lalitpur is all set for the final. Pokhara is also a strong team, so the final will be competitive. It will not be easy for anyone to win this game.' 

In a sense, the third season of the NSL is lucky, because it has two such teams in the file, which can be considered the best of the competition. 

One word has great importance in football and that is, 'invisible'. That is to win this league without losing any game. This is the opportunity before Lalitpur. Lalitpur is going through the best rhythm in the history of this competition which is only three seasons old. That includes a 10-match unbeaten run. Lalitpur is the same team, which won the top spot at the end of the league stage and comfortably beat Dhangadhi FC in the first qualifier. 

Now about Lalitpur's rivals. Pokhara Thunders itself is also in rhythm. The rhythm of Pokhara is more special and higher. After losing two games at the beginning of the league stage, Pokhara has suddenly become stronger. "We are getting better at every step," says Pokhara coach Suman Shrestha. Pokhara is undefeated in the last 6 matches. In all these matches, the team has conceded one goal. Clean seat in remaining 5 matches. Even one goal against Jhapa is from a free kick. 

In this case, it has been 565 minutes since Pokhara did not score a goal from 'open play'. Coincidentally, Pokhara's last defeat was against Lalitpur in the league stage. Pokhara was defeated in this match, but the performance on the field gave the team a 'momentum' and the team's performance really started to improve. After defeating FC Chitwan in the eliminator, coach Shrestha became very enthusiastic and said, 'Our goal is the title now.'

Pokhara was also lucky. In the second qualifier, they also managed to defeat Dhangadhi FC. Perhaps, as Lalitpur is based on solid management, Pokhara does not have such a situation. Before the start of the tournament, there was confusion about who owned the franchise team. Regardless of who the owner was, the management team that ran this team was different. To a large extent, the establishment side of Nepali football could not be positive about this, which is also natural. 

But the new owner and the management he trusted worked so hard that the team's performance remained incredible. It should be appreciated. Having said that, coach Shrestha believes that the next match is the final, so it will not be easy. Like his counterpart, he also believes that the final will be a fierce battle and the winner will get Rs 80 lakh. The loser will have to settle for 30 lakh rupees. 

In a sense, both teams are almost the same. The expected performance of foreign players will be almost the same. On one side, Lalitpur has an advantage. That is, Manikumar Lama, who left the field after receiving a red card in the first qualifier, will be allowed to play in the final. A wrong decision by referee Umesh Bidari was unfair to Mani. However, this decision was overturned off the field. Whether this decision was right or wrong, the debate about it is not going to end anytime soon. 

This is fine for Lalitpur, not for others. The referee makes a mistake, but can his mistake on the field be changed from outside or not, if so, is it applicable to other situations or not? This will be a topic of discussion in the coming days. Lalitpur's captain Anant and coach Grayson agreed that this decision was right. Pokhara's coach Shrestha could not give an exact answer to the question asked about this. He remained in dilemma.