SAFF Championship 2013: Our coach told us to exploit India’s weakness at the back – Nepal’s Anil Gurung

Anil Gurung celebrates his goal against India

Former Shillong Lajong striker Anil Gurung starred in Nepal’s 2-1 win over India at the SAFF Championship 2013 and was also named man of the match. The 24-year-old striker was a doubt before the game but played through pain and gave Nepal the lead with a typical poacher’s effort.

Gurung revealed to Indian journalists after the game that at half time Nepal’s Polish-American coach Jack Stefanowski had instructed them to have a go at India’s defence in the second half.

“We always believed we could get a result today so even at half time we were confident and the coach told us to exploit India’s weakness at the back. Thankfully we managed to do it and made our excellent fans happy. It’s a great day for Nepalese football,” Anil said.

Gurung has faced India in the past but this was his first goal against them and the forward believes that the six-time record South Asian champions are not as great as they used to be.

“I have played some very good Indian teams and possibly the current side isn’t that good but still we didn’t underestimate them and aimed to give a strong performance,” he added.

Nepal only needed a draw to win Group A and reach the semis but Anil revealed that three points was always the target for his team and that he doesn’t have any preferences for the semis.

“A draw would have been enough but we always wanted to win and maintain our momentum. Let’s see who we get in the semi-finals. Whoever it is we will prepare hard and hopefully reach the final,” Anil concluded.