Nepal will face Malaysia on Tuesday in the third round of the Asia Cup qualifiers.
What you should know
Whenever such a match comes around, Nepali football is heartbroken. Nepal will face Malaysia on Tuesday in the third round of the Asian Cup qualifiers.
This is a match that should have been played in Nepal, more precisely at the Dasharath Stadium. However, the match is being played in Malaysia, at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur. In this case, Nepal has lost the advantage of playing on home soil.
Malaysia will be happy to face Nepal at home. Moreover, Malaysia is at the top of Group 'F'. The team is comfortably in first place with 12 points after winning all four matches. If Malaysia wins the match against Nepal, the team's chances of qualifying for the next Asia Cup will be even stronger. In this group, Vietnam is in second place with 9 points, while Laos is in third place with 3 points.
Nepal and Laos' chances of qualifying have ended. Nepal, on the other hand, are in last place with no points. They have lost all four matches. Nepal's performance in this qualifier has been disappointing so far. But at this time, Nepal will also be a little excited, because Nepal has nothing to lose in this match, so they can play with fun for at least one point.
Moreover, Nepal drew 2-2 in the latest international friendly against Bangladesh, which is encouraging. Nepal's performance against Bangladesh in the match held at the National Stadium in Dhaka was never weak. Rohit Chand scored for Nepal in the beginning of that match, and Anant Tamang added an equalizer towards the end of the match.
Malaysia will be a different opponent compared to Bangladesh. However, the Malaysian national team is also going through a kind of problem. However, the team has consistently won. The Malaysian Football Association is accused of playing players of foreign origin. Legal proceedings are underway regarding this. That is why Malaysia will not be allowed to play the seven players considered to be of foreign origin against Nepal this time.
Nepali captain Kiran Limbu understands that fact well. He said in the pre-match conference held on Monday before the match, 'The last time the Malaysian team was strong, because it had seven such players. But I don't think the team has suddenly become weaker in their absence.' He said that since the Malaysian league itself is excellent, its impact will also affect the national team.
Kiran added, 'We will not make the same mistake we made in the previous match against Malaysia.' Nepali football 'legend' Hari Khadka made his debut as a coach in the draw against Bangladesh. He will be largely credited for that positive result. He said in the pre-match conference that the Nepali team will play positively and claimed that they will present a strong challenge against Malaysia.
Nepal's performance against Malaysia has not been good so far. Out of the six matches played so far, Nepal has drawn one. In the 1985 World Cup qualifiers, Nepal held Malaysia to a goalless draw at the Dasharath Stadium. Nepal has lost in five matches since then.
