Nepal eyes historic SAFF Women's Championship title

KATHMANDU, June 3: Sixth-time runners-up Nepal’s national women’s football team remains determined to win its first-ever title as it advances to the final stages of the eighth edition of the SAFF Women's Championship currently underway in India.

Since the inception of the SAFF Women's Championship in 2010, Nepal has reached the title-deciding match six times in seven editions. However, the team has always fallen short in the final. Despite remaining trophyless, Nepal has consistently been regarded as one of the strongest contenders in South Asian women's football and has regularly challenged for the championship.

This time, Nepal is competing without star striker Sabitra Bhandari and forward Sabita Rana Magar. Key midfielder Preeti Rai also missed the group-stage matches. Although Nepal has delivered only an average performance in India so far, the team remains focused on fulfilling its dream of lifting the title. To do so, however, Nepal must overcome two-time champions Bangladesh in Wednesday's semifinal.

Despite being the defending champions, Bangladesh has not looked as dominant as in previous years. Bangladesh, which had beaten India in recent competitions, suffered a heavy 3-0 defeat against the same opponent on Sunday. Nevertheless, Bangladesh's organized style of football could pose a serious challenge to Nepal.

Nepal’s head coach Nabin Neupane believes the chances are evenly balanced between the two teams and that the side which capitalizes on limited opportunities will emerge victorious.

"There is no alternative to putting up a strong fight against Bangladesh. The arrival of Preeti has boosted our confidence," said Neupane. "We have prepared a strategy specifically for Bangladesh and believe we can succeed. Against this team, opportunities will be scarce. If we fail to utilize them, things will become difficult. We will also place strong emphasis on maintaining an organized defensive structure."

To keep their title hopes alive, Nepal must defeat Bangladesh in Wednesday's semifinal. Nepal failed to produce convincing performances against relatively weaker opponents Bhutan and Sri Lanka during the group stage. However, the return of midfielder Preeti Rai has boosted the team's confidence. Rai joined the squad only on Monday after completing her commitments in the Cambodian professional league.

Coach Neupane believes the team showed significant improvement in its second match compared to the opening game. However, he acknowledged that facing Bangladesh would be much more difficult than the previous two encounters.

Neupane also noted that Bangladesh has not displayed the same level of performance this year that it produced during the AFC Women's Asian Cup and other recent competitions. That, however, does not mean Bangladesh is weak, he cautioned.

Among the previous seven editions, Nepal reached six finals. Of those, Nepal lost twice to Bangladesh in the championship match. The last two editions featured Nepal and Bangladesh meeting in the final. This time, however, the rivals will clash in the semifinal itself.

Neither Nepal nor Bangladesh appears as strong as in previous editions. Bangladesh enters the semifinal after a defeat to India, while Nepal struggled against Bhutan. Nevertheless, Neupane is optimistic that his side will deliver an improved performance in the semifinal.

The coach admitted that Nepal had failed to create enough opportunities for its strikers in the last two matches. He expects Preeti's arrival to improve that aspect of the game. With all players fit and available, Nepal hopes to produce a strong performance.

Bangladesh head coach Peter Butler has also described the semifinal against Nepal as an exciting contest.

Bangladesh women's football has recently been affected by internal controversies, and its group-stage performances reflected some of those issues. Even Maldives, traditionally one of the weakest teams in South Asia, managed to level the score at 2-2 against Bangladesh at one stage before Bangladesh eventually secured a 4-2 victory.

Bangladesh's weaknesses were further exposed in the defeat against India. India comfortably beat the defending champions 3-0. The loss, Bangladesh's first against India in seven years, has had a psychological impact on the team.

According to Bangladeshi media reports, the team did not hold a regular training session in Goa on Monday. Instead, the players participated in a recovery session, which is a routine post-match activity. No player spoke directly to the media.

However, in an official statement released by the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) media team, goalkeeping coach Masud Ahmed commented on the team's situation.

"We could not execute our plans against India. The players were given individual responsibilities. Some performed their roles well, while others could not. Against a team like India, if everyone fails to perform collectively, you will be punished, and that is exactly what happened to us," Ahmed said while acknowledging the team's shortcomings.

He added that Bangladesh is mentally prepared for the match against Nepal.

"We are constantly communicating with the players and working on solutions to our problems. We hope the players will bounce back against Nepal," he said.

There are also concerns regarding goalkeeper Milli Akhter, who suffered a head injury during the previous match. However, goalkeeping coach Ahmed remains hopeful that she will be available for the next game.

Bangladesh is also missing several experienced defenders this time, as they failed to secure places in the squad. Bangladeshi supporters believe their absence has weakened the team's defense.

Nepal aims to exploit this vulnerability. However, the Nepali side will need to produce an outstanding performance to do so.

In the second semifinal, India will face Bhutan. India is a five-time SAFF Women's Championship winner and has strengthened its claim for another title after defeating emerging South Asian force Bangladesh 3-0. Bhutan, meanwhile, is still seeking its first-ever appearance in the tournament final.