Bhutan’s national football team is in Pokhara for two friendly matches against Nepal. As expected, Nepal with its superior position in the FIFA rankings, won both the matches against the Himalayan neighbor.
For reasons best known to themselves, many football fans believe that playing against Bhutan is not very fruitful for the Nepali national team. However, I believe that hosting of a friendly is a positive step forward for the Nepali football for a number of reasons.
One good reason why I believe this is that such matches are important for the national team to keep itself exposed. At a time when the participation and exposure of our national team at the international level is limited, such matches, no matter how strong or weak is the other opponent, help boost the players’ confidence and morale. The lack of exposure also hampers the team’s performance. Apart from a few events that it participates, our national team has not taken part in many international events.
Thus, matches such as this give the players an opportunity to understand team-combination and help learn from their own weaknesses while boosting their confidence level.
Exposure to international matches is of critical importance in improving the performance of the players and the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) should invite the national squads of all South Asian neighbors on a regular basis. This, if properly worked out, is certainly possible with minimum costs. Even better option will be offering the national squad regular bilateral tours to the region.
The friendly match with Bhutan comes at a time when Nepal’s new British coach Graham Roberts will be able to assess the team’s performance ahead of the crucial AFC Challenge Cup Group D qualifiers when Nepal, Sri Lanka, North Korea and either Bhutan or Afghanistan will be competing each other in Kathmandu later this year. It that sense, the match is crucial. The high-profile coach, who had remained a player in Chelsea and Tottenham for English Premier League, will be under pressure to deliver and meet the expectations of players.
The AFC Challenge Cup group qualifiers is scheduled for second week of April, so Roberts will have ample time after the friendly against Bhutan to adjust the team in accordance to his assessment. This will certainly help Nepali team perform better.
This is the second time that Pokhara, the second most important destination for Nepali football after Kathmandu, is in the spotlight for hosting international friendlies. The lake city has already hosted high-profile Aaha Gold Cup organized by Sahara Club. It may be recalled here that in March 2008, Pokhara hosted two friendlies between Nepal and Pakistan that ended in a tie. Nepal, nevertheless, beat Pakistan 2-1 in the first match, while Pakistan won the second match 2-0.
Notwithstanding the possibly low attendance of spectators in the first match against Bhutan, the series will no doubt draw a huge spectators and fans from outside Kathmandu. Until recently, football matches and knock-out events had been largely confined to the boundary of the capital city, Kathmandu. But this time around, a differential equation will follow the Nepali football. The timely decision of the ANFA to host the match outside the hustle and bustle of Kathmandu, is, thus, praiseworthy.
