SAFF Championship 2013: Team Profile – Nepal

Sportskeeda continues the buildup to next month’s SAFF Championship by profiling each of the eight participating nations. Here we have a look at one of India’s group opponents and hosts Nepal.

FIFA Ranking: 170

AFC Ranking: 35

History

Nepal’s first-ever international match dates back to 1972 and they have always been one of the minnows of Asia, having never come close to qualifying for the Asian Cup. The landlocked country have also struggled to make their mark at the AFC Challenge Cup, a tournament for the emerging nations of the continent, as besides a semi-final appearance in the inaugural edition they have only qualified for it twice, with one of those occasions being as hosts.. They have crashed out from the group stage on both those editions.

Even at sub-continent level, Nepal doesn’t have much to show for as they have never reached the final of the SAFF Championship. The two gold medals won at the South Asian Games stands out as their only international success but in truth Nepal don’t have a rich footballing history. However there is no dearth of passion for the beautiful game in Nepal and unlike in many South-Asian countries, that football following is extended for their own national team also. While fans in most parts in the sub-continent are only concerned with European football action, the Nepali faithful provide great support for their national team home and away.

The All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) also have their own academy in place and the domestic league has also seen some improvement in recent years. Nepal still have a long way to go in terms of infrastructure but the effort is surely there from their football fraternity and SAFF Championship 2013 grants them another chance to give a glimpse of their hard work.

SAFF Championship Best Performance: Semi-finalists (1995, 1999, 2011)

SAFF Championship History

Nepal are one of four teams to have participated in every edition of the SAFF Championship but have only made it to the semi-finals three times. The first of those was achieved in 1995 when the tournament only had five participants and four years later they reached the last four with only six nations in the competition. So their first real good showing came in the 2011 edition in New Delhi where they reached the semi-finals of an eight-nation event.

Nepal (in blue) were beaten in the 2011 semi-finals by Afghanistan

‘The Gorkhalis’ won only one game in that tournament but bowed out without losing a match in 90 minutes as they were beaten after extra-time by Afghanistan in the semi-finals. The 2011 tournament undoubtedly saw a significant improvement from the Nepal national team as they were eliminated from the group stage for four straight editions since 2003, when the SAFF Championship became an eight-team competition. 1997 was the last time Nepal were the hosts and they exited at the group stage with two defeats in as many games. They would be aiming to reach the semis at least this time.

Current Team

Former Tottenham, Chelsea and England defender Graham Roberts was quite popular during his 14-month reign as Nepal head coach mainly because of the team’s good showing in the 2011 SAFF Championship. But Roberts resigned following Nepal’s group stage exit from the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup, which they hosted. Krishna Thapa was caretaker boss for the remainder of 2012 when they also played in the Nehru Cup in New Delhi. Then in January 2013, the ANFA announced Polish-born American coach Jack Stefanowski as the new permanent head coach and the 38-year-old will be under pressure to match the feat of 2011 on home soil.

Jack Stefanowski faces a daunting task

Stefanowski’s reign didn’t get off to the best of starts as Nepal failed to even come second in their AFC Challenge Cup 2014 qualifying group despite being the hosts. They lost to Bangladesh but showed great character to hold higher ranked and technically superior Palestine to a goalless draw. The only victory came against non-FIFA member Northern Mariana Islands. Stefanowski and his assistant Richard Oliski have been well supported by the ANFA for the national team’s preparations as they had tour of Bahrain and Kuwait. Although Nepal didn’t face any senior national team during their gulf tour, the SAFF 2013 hosts played five matches, wining four and losing one. Stefanowski will be encouraged by the fact that Nepal scored 14 in those five games especially because his side are yet to score against a FIFA-member nation in his three matches.

Nepal’s poor record in front of goal has been carried on from the stints of Graham Roberts and Krishna Thapa as they have scored just twice in their last 12 matches against FIFA-member opposition. However Stefanowski will be encouraged by the form of star striker Anil Gurung, who bagged a brace against Kuwait club Fahaheel SC in their last practice match. There are also plenty of expectations from 15-year-old Bimal Gharti Magar, who was top scorer at the recently concluded u-16 SAFF Championship and scored a hattrick in the 8-2 hammering of Kuwait club Al Arabi. Defender Ananta Tamang is the other U-16 player in the squad while the versatile Rohit Chand is the only foreign-based player. Nepal domestic champions Three Star club is the most represented team with 11 of their players being part of the Gulf tour squad.

Squad for Gulf Tour

Goalkeepers: Kiran Chemjong, Ritesh Thapa, Bishal ShresthaDefenders: Sandeep Rai, Sagar Thapa, Rabin Shrestha, Sabindra Shrestha, Bijay Dhimal, Biraj Maharjan, Rohit Chand, Ananta TamangMidfielders: Bhola Silwal, Bijay Gurung, Raju Tamang, Prakash Budhathoki, Jagjeet Shrestha, Nirajan Khadka, Bikram Lama, Tanka Basnet, Tek Bahadur BudhathokiForwards: Jumanu Rai, Santosh Sahukhala, Anil Gurung, Bharat Khawas, Bimal Gharti Magar

Key Players

Rohit Chand

Rohit Chand

The 21-year-old has had a spell in India with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, having also scored an I-League hattrick. Chand currently plays for Indonesian Super League outfit Persita Jakarta and is capable of playing anywhere in defence or midfield. He is simply indispensable for the Nepal national team.

Jagjeet Shrestha

The 21-year-old has been tipped by goalnepal.com to be one of the best young players in the tournament. A product of the ANFA academy, Jagjeet, who has also had a one-month training stint with Bayern Munich, usually plays as a wide midfielder and is one of Nepal’s most creative players.

Anil Gurung

Like Chand, the 24-year-old striker is another Nepal international who has played in the I-League. Anil, whose stint in India was with Shillong Lajong, failed to live up to expectations in the 2011 SAFF Championship and thus will be determined to be among the top scorers of the 2013 edition.

SAFF 2013 Group: India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan

SAFF 2013 FixturesAugust 31: Bangladesh; September 3: Pakistan; September 5: India

SAFF 2013 Expectations

Nepal will be encouraged by the good record of previous host nations in this competition as India (twice), Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Maldives (as co-hosts) have all lifted the regional title on home soil. But as per FIFA Rankings, Nepal are the joint-second lowest placed team in this tournament and the lowest-ranked nation in this group. They have already lost to Bangladesh and Pakistan at home under Stefanowski in this calendar year so confidence won’t be sky high. However Nepal should still be encouraged by the support that they will enjoy and will have to take the initiative with a victory over Bangladesh in the opener. If they manage that, Nepal would fancy their chances of reaching the semis. That will be the minimum expectation from their public and football federation but it is a daunting task.