KATHMANDU, Nov 5: Nepal U-19 football team has left for Iran to play the 2020 AFC U-19 Championship Qualification matches.
All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) saw off the Nepali team amid a function in Kathmandu on Monday.
Nepal facing Lebanon in 2020 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification
Pitted in Group D, Nepal will start its campaign against the United Arab Emirates on Nov 6 before taking on host Iran on Nov 8. Nepal will then face Kyrgyzstan on Nov 10 in its final group match. Group C leader Tajikistan has already qualified for the AFC U-19 Championship finals with three win in three games to be held in Uzbekistan.
Tajikistan humiliated Maldives 9-0, and defeated both Lebanon and Syria with 1-0 scoreline in the matches held in October to secure its place for the finals.
Lebanon finished as runner-up of Group C despite having equal points with Syria on four, who finished third on inferior goal difference.
The group winners across all groups (A to K) and the four best runners-up will qualify for the finals, and if the host Uzbekistan wins its group or is among the four best runners-up, the fifth best runner-up will also qualify for the finals.
Lebanon will be eliminated if other four runners-up finish with more points or superior goal difference than it.
SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Bishal Sunar, Rohit Karki, Pujan Hona
Defenders: Bishal Basnet, Sandeep Paudel, Padam Bhattarai, Ashim Gurung, Nabin Gurung, Roshan Dong, Bikash Khawas, Yogesh Gurung, Nirajan Maharjan
Midfielders: Darshan Gurung, Ranjan Pun, Aakash Budha Magar, Jay Gurung, Manish Thapa, Anil Maharjan, Dinesh Hemjan
Forwards: Manish Dangi, Rajiv Lopchan, Rejin Subba, Dipesh Ale Magar
