Nepal aim to win Three Nations Cup title

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Mar. 22: Nepal sets sight on the title of the Prime Minister Three Nations Cup as it takes on Laos in the inaugural match at Dasarath Stadium on Wednesday. 

To mark International FIFA Day, the All Nepal Football Association is organising the event. Nepal, Laos and Bhutan battle in the single round-robin league tournament where the top two teams will vie for a title worth USD 5000. 

The newly appointed Nepali football team’s Coach Vincenzo Alberto Annese said the main goal is to win the title. “The most important thing is to win the title. Besides, the tri-nation event will also help in the preparation of the SAFF Championship.” 

‘New faces’

Just one day ahead of the tournament, Coach Annese also announced a 23-member national squad including six new faces. 

“I delayed announcing the final squad to protect them from injuries and negative comments on social media. Had I named the final squad early many questions would have arisen. It may demotivate the players. I wanted them to focus on the training. There is nothing behind my delayed announcement.”

“The final squad is dominated with new faces. Since I came to Kathmandu 18 days ago, I have been watching many league matches. Looking at the performance in the league, I have named the squad. Looking at their ball possession, I have selected the best players. Due to injury, many players could not make it to the final cut. I only named the players who could play all 90 minutes.”

Goalkeeper Abhishek Baral, defenders duo Sanish Shrestha and Padam Bhattarai, midfielder Mani Kumar Lama and forward duo Dipak Singh Thakuri and Sumit Shrestha are the new calls in the squad.

He excluded midfielder Sujal Shrestha and striker Bimal Gharti Magar due to injuries. Italian Annese said his players just had three days of training. “We have just three days of training. It went perfectly.”

‘Huge challenge’

Annese said Nepal had not underestimated Bhutan and Laos. The inaugural match against Laos will be the first test of Coach Annese. The match against the South East Asian national will kick off at 18:00 NST at Dasarath Stadium. 

Captain Kiran Chemjong said Nepal is all ready to face the challenge in short preparation. 

“We have a huge challenge in the tournament. We haven’t had enough time for the training. However, we are ready for the challenge. All the players are physically fit.  We have prepared mentally too. Laos is very good. Bhutan has made a huge improvement. We will do our best in the Cup.” 

‘Display Laos football’

Laos’ Coach Michael Weib said his young boys would give a good fight to Nepal. “We landed in Kathmandu with youth players. We are focusing on the future. The preparation has not been enough because of the domestic league. We will face host for a positive result.”

Laos’ skipper Soukaphone Vongchiengkham was excited to be in Kathmandu for the first time. “We will display Laos football here in Kathmandu. Under our new Germany Coach, we have many changes in the team. The team is dominated by young players. I am excited to play in Nepal for the first time.”

‘Win title’

Coach of Bhutan, Pema Dorji said his team is in Kathmandu to win the title. 

“The preparation for the tournament has been quite good. We conducted training for two months. We have not participated in any tournaments after our return from the Maldives SAFF Championship. Moreover, all of my players are fit and will give their hundred per cent.”

Bhutan’s captain Chencho Gyeltshen said he had a wonderful experience playing in Nepal. He thanked Nepali football fans for their support during the SAFF. “I am hopeful about the competitive and fun tournament ahead,” Captain Chencho added.