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| Kathmandu, Wednesday March 19, 2003 Chaitra 05, 2059. |
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Nepal hit Afghanistan for four
Post Report
KATHMANDU, March 18 : Ace striker Nirajan
Rayamajhi’s double strike along with a goal each from Hari Khadka and Deepak Lama
gave Nepal an emphatic 4-0 victory over Afghanistan in the Asian Cup Pre-qualifying
Football tournament played at the Dashrath Stadium on Tuesday.
Nepal should not lose by more than three goals
in the match against Kyrgzistan on Thursday to qualify for the second round. Afghanistan,
who defeated Kyrgyzistan 2-1 on Sunday are out of the tournament after they netted two
goals in two matches and conceded five.
"Boys followed instructions keenly at the
field," said Nepali coach Krishna Thapa at the press conference held after the match.
"Knowing that our opponents are not a tough side, we played aggressively throughout
and dominated the match entirely," Thapa added. According to him, Nepal will play
aggressively against Kyrgzistan in the final league match though they need just a draw to
ensure their place for the second round to be held in South Korea. Afghan coach Mir Ali
Akbar was unavailable at the press conference.
Nepal pressed hard from the onset but went
without reward due to some heroic goalkeeping and well-marshaled defense of the Afghans.
Nepal squandered a golden chance when prolific striker Hari Khadka miscued a spot-kick in
the 29th minute. Afghan keeper Jamshed dived to his right to save a certain goal. The
penalty was offered to Nepal after Rahil Ahmad Fourmoli brought down Rayamajhi inside the
18-yard area.
But five minutes later, Rayamajhi broke the ice
through a superb leftfooted shot. Midfielder Ananta Thapa fed him from the right just
six-yard away from the goal where Rayamajhi flicked the ball past Jamshed for 1-0 lead.
The match was the first home match for Rayamajhi who was playing his 14th international
match on Tuesday.
Sayeed Tahir Shah tried to level the match in
37th minute when Upendra Man Singh faltered while collecting his 20-yard away shot. But
Singh recovered quickly before Shah could reach for the rebound.
Hari Khadka compensated for his missed penalty
netting a gem of a goal in the 39th minute. He dribbled past four Afghan players before
unleashing a powerful drive that beat Jamshed at the goal as Nepal doubled the lead 2-0.
Veteran Bal Gopal Maharjan had a close look in the injury time but his header from the box
went just over the cross bar.
Afghanistan took total control in their defense
in the second half as Nepali players failed to keep the first half tempo after the break.
In 67th minute referee Rizwan Ul Haq gave marching order to Sunil Tuladhar and Nijibullah
Karimi after they were involved in a physical brawl.
Nepal came close to the third goal when defender
Narayan Manandhar’s long freekick taken in the 64th minute kissed the cross bar.
Rayamajhi scored his second and team’s third in 89th minute taking a rebound after
goalie Jamshed failed to gather a Kumar Thapa’s powerful strike from the penalty
area. The goal helped Rayamajhi to take his tally in Nepali international matches to 12.
Khadka is the only player ahead of him in the goalscoring list. Khadka, after netting the
goal in the match, has scored 13 times for the country in international football.
Deepak Lama, whose first attempted header went
inches outside the bar in the 62nd minute, directed it at right spot to make the score 4-0
in the injury time. Lama took a freekick off Hari Khadka at the centre and headed home a
superb goal to confirm a convincing victory. The victory was Nepal’s eighth
international victory at the Dashrath Stadium.
Match summary:
Nep Afg
Off-side 4 5
Shot on target 6 2
Corner 9 2
Yellow Card - 2
Red Card 1 1
Foul 8 13
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