The winner of the four-team group, which also consists of Turkmenistan, will qualify for the final rounds. Along with the group winners, the best five runners-up from all 10 groups will join host Thailand in the finals of the competition to be held next year.
“Though it is not easy, our target is to come up with our best performance and qualify for the final rounds,” Maharjan said after the completion of the training camp. “The match will be tough, but it is not impossible to beat them. The gap between the teams is not as big as in the senior national teams.”
Remembering the bitter 1-0 defeat against India in the final of SAFF U-16 Championship on home ground, Maharjan said, “We will try to amend the mistakes we made in the SAFF. The team started preparations for the qualifiers a week after the completion of the SAFF U-16 Championship on July 31.”
“The team looked weak in defense, inattentive in set pieces, rebounds and dead balls. They also lacked proper communication. Thus we will come up with improved performances in these areas,” said Maharjan, who is assisted by goalkeeping coach Mrigendra Maharjan and coach Sunil Shrestha in his job.
Maharjan also said they are better both in terms of individual skills and as a team. “Luck is also important in football along with hard work. We were unlucky in the SAFF Championship,” said Maharjan.
Maharjan plans to adopt a 4-4-2 formation. “But the formation can be changed as per the requirement of the match,” he added.
Maharjan plans to declare the final 23-member squad, including some new faces, from among 30 players on Tuesday. Two players of the SAFF starting line-up are out of the current squad due to jaundice and third-choice goalkeeper Abhilash Thapa has also been left out.
Meanwhile, influential forward Bimal Gharti Magar, who netted the highest five goals in the U-16 SAFF Championship and also scored a goal against Pakistan for the senior squad in the SAFF Championship, will wear the captain’s armband in the qualifiers. “Giving the captaincy is a reward to Gharti Magar who scored for the senior team. He is happy with the responsibility we have assigned him,” said Maharjan, whose side will take on Bahrain in the opening match.
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