Tag: Nepal

29/10/2021

Omid team defeats Lebanon in AFC U23 qualifiers.

Dushanbe: Iran and group host Tajikistan set up a winner-takes-all Group B finale in AFC U23 Asian Cup Uzbekistan 2022 qualifying after both sides secured wins on Thursday.

the-afc.com

Iran earned a 2-0 win over Lebanon in the early match at Dushanbe’s Central Republican Stadium, before Tajikistan piled on the goals to beat Nepal 6-0 in the later game.

Lebanon 0-2 IR Iran

Keen to build on their strong finish In Monday’s 4-0 win over Nepal. Iran took just five minutes to go ahead through Mehdi Lamouchi, who latched onto skipper Yasin Salmani’s pass before beating Lebanese goalkeeper Antoine Al Douaihy from close range.

Iran suffered a blow when Mohammad Khodabandehlo was sent off after being shown a second yellow card in the 36th minute, but Lebanon failed to capitalize on their numerical advantage.

Mahdavikia’s side missed the chance to extend their lead when Saman Fallahvarnami’s Panenka-style penalty kick was kept out by the woodwork in the 90th minute, but the second goal did arrive in the fourth minute of injury time, with Milad Kor rising high to head home the sealer.

Team Melli Omid now faces what looms as a crucial clash with Tajikistan, while Lebanon will be playing for pride in their final outing against Nepal.

09/07/2021

AFC U23 Champinshp draw

Tashkent: Asia’s rising stars discovered their opponents following the conclusion of the AFC U23 Asian Cup Uzbekistan 2022 Qualifiers Draw in Tashkent on Friday.

The 42 teams were drawn into 11 groups with 15 spots available at the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2022 with Uzbekistan having already confirmed their place as hosts, the first time the tournament will be staged in the Central Zone.

The draw divided the teams into two Regions – the West Region comprising 23 West, South, and Central Participating Teams as well as the East Region, which consists of 19 East and ASEAN Participating Teams.

The Qualifiers are scheduled for October 23 to 31, 2021 with the 11 group winners and four best second-placed teams sealing their qualification to the Finals.

Iran, hosts Tajikistan, Lebanon and Nepal will contest Group B.

Iraq, the 2013 champions, headline Group C which will be hosted by Bahrain with Afghanistan and Maldives also contesting.

Saudi Arabia, runners-up in 2013 and 2020, will play in Group D with Bangladesh, hosts Kuwait and Uzbekistan, who will be participating in a friendly capacity with their results not included in the standings.

United Arab Emirates will host Group E with Oman, India, and Kyrgyz Republic challenging them for the sole automatic spot available to the Finals while hosts Jordan have Palestine and Turkmenistan for company in Group F.

Australia, who finished third in the 2020 AFC U23 Asian Cup, were drawn in Group G with China PR, hosts Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam.

The Korea Republic, the winners of the 2020 edition, will face ASEAN opposition in hosts Singapore, Timor-Leste and Philippines in Group H while 2018 runners-up Vietnam are with Myanmar, Hong Kong and hosts Chinese Taipei in Group I.

Mongolia will host ASEAN sides Thailand, Malaysia and Laos in Group J while DPR Korea, 2016 champions Japan and Cambodia are in Group K, with the hosts to be named in due course.

*Uzbekistan’s results will not be counted in the Group D standings.

09/11/2019

Iran U19 defeats Nepal U19 4-0

After a comfortable win against the Kyrgyz Republic, Iran’s U19 registered another handsome one against Nepal with leading Group D of the AFC Asian U19 CHampionship qualifier after two rounds.

Iran were held scoreless for 75 minutes before coming home with a wet sail to register a 4-0 win over Nepal in Friday’s later match.

Nepal showed great spirit to keep the hosts at bay until deep into the second half, but Mohammadmahdi Ahmadi’s drought-breaking header sparked an Iranian onslaught which produced four goals in 15 minutes.

Iran’s win keeps them on track to reach Uzbekistan 2020, with Team Melli U19 able to seal their place by avoiding defeat against UAE on Sunday.

The hosts were well on top in the opening stages, but Nepal defended in numbers, showing composure and discipline to keep clear cut chances to a minimum in a scoreless first half.

Despite a frustrating opening 45 minutes, the Iranian goal threat showed little sign of subsiding, with Nepal surviving a number of close calls from headed efforts as well as a goalmouth scramble following a dangerous cross from Alireza Asadabadi.

With 15 minutes remaining, Nepal could sense a famous result, but the plot twisted sharply when Ahmadi was left alone to head in a corner kick from just five yards, and it became a double blow when Iranian skipper Ahmad Reza Jalali slammed in a second, also following a corner kick, in the 84th minute.

The floodgates were now open, particularly when Alireza Monazami rounded Nepal goalkeeper Bishal Sunar to ease home Iran’s third just two minutes later, with Aria Barzegar putting the icing on the cake with another goal in the 90th minute.

The 11 group winners and four best runners-up will join hosts Uzbekistan in the 2020 Finals.

Tajikistan has already qualified as Group C winners and should Uzbekistan finish either top of Group F of the Qualifiers or are among the best four second-placed teams, the fifth-best runners-up will qualify.

In the post-match press conference, the head coach of the Nepalese youth team said “keeping the Iranian team at bay until the 75th minute was a big achievement for us. “There is a big difference between us and Iran and the fact that we were able to keep the game even to up to 75th minutes is very rewarding,” said Kaysi, the head coach of the Nepalese national youth team after the defeat to Iran’s youth team in the Asian Championship qualifier

“We are trying to reach the level of football in Iran.” He continued: “We resisted for 30 minutes against the Emirates but we couldn’t resist anymore and that makes us different from other teams. We are trying to bring the level of Nepal football to the level of teams like Emirates and Iran.”

Group D

Standings

		P	W	L	F	A	GD	PTS
1	IRAN	2	2	0	7	0	7	6
2	KYRGYZ REPUBLIC	2	1	1	2	3	-1	3
3	UNITED ARAB EMIRATES	2	1	1	4	2	2	3
4	NEPAL	2	0	2	0	8	-8	0

Additional reporting by the-afc.com

06/11/2019

Perfect start for Iran U19 starts with a solid win vs Kyrgyzstan

Iran’s U19 national football team started the qualification for the final tournament in a positive manner defeating a stubborn 3-0 in the match held today Wednesday in Pas stadium in Ekbatan.

This is the first victory of the team coached by Sirous

The AFC Asian U19 Youth Championship Group D qualifying match between Iran and Kyrgyzstan ended goal-less. Both teams efforts to score were futile with some of their best chances to score wasted as neither could find the opener as the score remained 0-0 at half-time.

In the second half, the tide changed and the stubborn defensive game-plan of Kyrgyzstan crumbled early. The second half started with Iran’s pressing hard to break the deadlock. In the53rd minute Iran scored the opener. Aria Barzegar jumped above the defenders to finish off Ahmad Reza Jalali’s perfect delivery from the left flank.

The goal spurred Seyyed Akbar PourMousavi’s side to push forward as they dominated the game and their persistence paid off in the 78th minute when Alireza Monazami rose highest to head home Iran’s second goal. It was a well-taken header, as Monazami managed to increase the deficit for his team.

Yassin Salmani sealed the match for the host in the 82nd minute. Salmani cooly slotted the penalty spot-kick to make it 3-0.

Despite the good result, Pourmousavi’s team lacked good finishing. There were individual flashes of good moves by the young players but as a cohesive unit, it seems that the team needs much more time to gel. Kyrgyzstan team was defensively strong with good physical shapes. The team was mostly dependent on their defensive play including some rough handling of the Iranian forwards. Despite their good efforts, especially in the 1st half, the team lacked punch upfront and were technically weak in ball handling. Their aerial defences left a lot to be desired.

With this result, Iran is in the second in Group D by goal difference. Kyrgyzstan will meet UAE next while Iran will face off against Nepal on Friday at 17:45

14/10/2017

Iran the benchmark for AFC futsal championship 2018 hopefuls

the-afc.com

Tabriz: The Islamic Republic of Iran is the setting as the countdown starts for the AFC Futsal Championship 2018 with the South and Central Zone Qualifiers which kicks off on Sunday.

The South and Central zones have been merged into one qualification zone as Nepal are the only representatives from the South, bringing the total to seven teams competing for four spots in the Finals in Chinese Taipei next year.

Uzbekistan, runners-up in the previous edition, are one of the favourites to qualify.

The White Wolves had an impressive run at the 2016 tournament, topping Group A to progress into the quarter-finals where they beat Iraq 3-0, before a 3-1 penalty shootout win in the semi-finals against Thailand secured them a place in the final against Iran.

In the recent 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, history repeated itself with Iran beating Uzbekistan to claim the title.

Uzbekistan will face Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan and Nepal in Group A of the qualifiers.

Uzbekistan faced Kyrgyz Republic in the AFC Futsal Championship 2016.

Kyrgyz Republic finished sixth in the AFC Futsal Championship 2016, and an early elimination from the 2017 Asian Indoor Games leaves the Snow Leopards with much ground to cover.

However, they have not missed a single Finals since the tournament’s inception in 1999, and can be expected to provide stiff opposition.

After two failed attempts to qualify for the Finals, Turkmenistan are ready to make a difference.

Despite losing out to Afghanistan on penalties in the quarter-finals in 2016, hosting the 2017 Asian Indoor Games has helped the team improve significantly.

Having played more competitive matches, the Turkeminstan side will be aiming to outdo their previous performances.

The South zone’s sole representative Nepal will make their AFC Futsal Championship debut against Asia’s best, but in a top flight tournament, surprises cannot be ruled out.

In the three-team Group B, Iran are the ones to beat and the odds are surely against Tajikistan and Afghanistan.

The futsal powerhouse hold the record of 11 championship titles, and the team have enjoyed much success in recent years.

After winning the 2016 AFC Futsal Championship, the Iranians finished third in the FIFA Futsal World Cup Colombia 2016, before claiming their fifth Asian Indoor Games gold medal.

Dangerman Ali Asghar Hassanzadeh (pictured below), who was named the Most Valuable Player after assisting Iran beat Uzbekistan in the final, will definitely play a huge role in this qualifier.

Tajikistan’s closest attempt at the title was their 2007 campaign where they reached the quarter-finals but were halted by Uzbekistan.

They have struggled to make the cut into the knockout phase ever since, despite consecutive qualifications.

Afghanistan turned heads in the 2017 Asian Indoor Games when they defeated Uzbekistan 4-2 to claim top spot in their group to progress to the quarter-finals, but losses to eventual champions Iran in the semis and Japan in the third place play-off secured them fourth place.

A result worth highlighting, as the Lions of Khorasan have yet to make an appearance in the AFC Futsal Championship Finals stage.

Matches

October 15

Group A
Uzbekistan v Nepal
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1400

Kyrgyz Republic v Turkmenistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1630

Group B
Afghanistan v Iran
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1900

October 16

Group A
Nepal v Kyrgyz Republic
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1400

Turkmenistan v Uzbekistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1630

Group B
Tajikistan v Afghanistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1900

October 17

Group A
Uzbekistan v Kyrgyz Republic
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1400

Turkmenistan v Nepal
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1630

Group B
Iran v Tajikistan
Venue: Pour Sharifi Futsal Hall, Tabriz
Kick-off: 1900

05/10/201505/10/2015

Iran U19 continues its victory trail defeating Jordan 3-0

Mashad: Iran took a step closer to the 2016 AFC U-19 Championship with a 3-0 defeat of Jordan that saw the Group E hosts open up a two-point lead at the top of the table over Kuwait, who came from a goal down to draw 1-1 with Nepal in Sunday’s earlier qualifier.

After a demoralising 10-0 humbling at the hands of hosts Iran, Nepal gave a better account of themselves in their second Group E fixture and took the lead a minute after the hour mark through skipper Bimal Gharti Magar only for Khaled Al Enezi to rescue a point for the Kuwaitis with the equaliser ten minutes later.

Kuwait’s draw allowed Iran to go two points clear at the top of the Group E standings after the hosts handed Jordan their second successive defeat as Amirhossein Peirivani’s side enjoyed a 3-0 victory as the qualifying campaign reached its penultimate round of fixtures.

Jordan, who lost 2-1 to Kuwait in Monday’s Group E opener, and Iran looked to be heading into the interval at the Samen Al Aemeh Stadium with the game locked at 0-0 until Nima Daghestani struck on the stroke of half-time to give the home side the lead.

Reza Shekari took his personal tally to three in two games when he followed up his two goals against Nepal with Iran’s second in Sunday’s crucial clash with the Jordanians before Nima Mokhtari repeated Shekari’s achievement when he scored his third of the campaign in the 63rd minute as Iran ran out comfortable 3-0 winners.

Ten group winners and five best second-placed teams will qualify for the finals while hosts Bahrain received an automatic qualification (total 16 teams).

If Bahrain finish top of their qualifying group or one of the five second best-placed teams, the next (6th) second-placed team will qualify for the final competition.

Group E

Teams	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	PTS
IRAN	2	2	0	0	13	0	13	6
KUWAIT	2	1	1	0	3	2	1	4
NEPAL	2	0	1	1	1	11	-10	1
JORDAN	2	0	0	2	1	5	-4	0

04/09/2015

Iran Will be a Difficult Game for Us: India Coach Stephen Constantine

Reported By Press Trust of India

Bengaluru: As the beleaguered Indian football team gets ready to face Iran in what is touted to be its most difficult outing in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, chief coach Stephen Constantine says he wants to “give fans “something to cheer about”.

A 23-member Indian team arrived here today for the September 8 preliminary joint qualification match against the Asian giant.

Stunned by lower-ranked Guam in their previous outing, Indian players had been training at DSK Shivajians in Pune since August 24.

Besides, India also played an international friendly against Nepal on August 31, which ended in a goalless draw.

“We have great support here. The fans are really behind the national team. I appreciate that and so do the players,” Constantine said.

“I hope we can give the fans something to cheer about. It will be very difficult match for us but that’s the time when you can discover on whom you can depend upon.” (Indian Football Season Can’t be Dictated by Television: Constantine)

As per the current raking, Iran are placed 40 in the ladder with India at 155.

The boys were given a break in the afternoon and practice would resume from Saturday morning.

Reflecting back on the training stint in Pune, the coach said, “The huge advantage that the DSK campus has is that you have everything in one place. You have your medical facilities, the pool, the gym, rooms for screening and analysis in one campus besides the two wonderful training grounds,” he stated.

“You have everything that you should have as a club never mind a national team.

“Furthermore, the willingness of the authorities who were immensely proud to serve the national team was awesome indeed. I need to thank Mr. Shirish Kulkarni and his team and look forward to continuing the relationship with them in the future,” he affirmed.

23/03/201523/03/2015

Omid team rout Nepal 5-0

Iran’s U23 team (Omid Team) defeated Nepal U23 5-0 in Group C of the AFC U-23 Championship match held at Azadi today. The first half ended 2-0 for Iran U23.

Iran’s goal were scored by Arsalan Motahari minute 15 [1-0] , Behnam Barzay from the penalty spot in the 28^th minute [2-0] , Sardar Azmoun on the 54^th [3-0] , Ali Karimi on the 67^th minute [4-0] and Shahin Saghebi on 88^th minute [5-0].

Unfortunately, the match was played in front of empty Azadi Stadium bar a few hundred that turned up to cheer the Omid players. Nowrooz Holidays is one of the reasons for lack of interest by the fans.

The match was a one sided affair where Iran’s Omid controlled from the beginning not allowing the Nepalese team any time on the ball. Nepal, despite having a few good players, lacked in confidence and ambition and seemed to focus on conceding the least number of goals.

Despite the supremacy of Omid Team , the result does not truly reflect the game as the Iranian players wasted a handful of scoring chances. Considering the opportunities missed, the result could have been easily in double figure by minute 75 of the match. Some slack finishing, lack of vision, complacency and inaccuracy in the last shoot by the Iranian forwards, saved the blushes of the Nepalese team. Credit must also be given to the Nepalese goalkeeper , who was their best player by far, who executed some heroics to keep the powerful Iranians at bay.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh was given a rest day after his long journey from Holland where he played his last game in the league by winning promotion for NEC some 10 weeks before the league conclusion.

Azmoun played with finesse and style however, he was found wanting on several easy balls that he should have scored. One of the more beautiful scenes of the match was his close range powerful header that was spectacularly saved by Nepal keeper.

Despite the emphatic result and the supremacy of the Omid Team against what was a weak opponent whose priority was damage limitation and time wasting, the overall shape of the team was lacking in several areas. The team looked and played like 11 individual talented players each with his own excellent skills. What blemished the display, however, was the poor teamwork especially in the finishing.

Improved and more efficient Teamwork is needed against the better oppositions. With more games ahead and practice sessions, it is hoped that weakness areas are covered , although none was apparent against a weak team. The are enough talented players in this current Omid team for Iran to stand a very good chance on making it to the Olympics. The onus is on the coaching staff to maintain discipline and good standard in the long road to qualification.

For the first official match , the team gave the few hundred fans in Azadi , quite a lot of hope and by the time Saudi Arabia meets Iran in the last match , the team should have jelled together much better and understanding between the players improved.

the-afc.com

Tehran: Iran took the early initiative in Group C of the 2016 AFC U-23 Championship qualifiers as the Group C hosts ran out comfortable 5-0 winners over Nepal in Monday’s later match at the PAS Stadium following Palestine’s 2-0 defeat of Afghanistan.

Arsalan Motahhari, who came off the bench to score in Naft Tehran’s 2-1 come-from-behind win over Al Shabab in last week’s AFC Champions League, put the home side one up after 14 minutes before a 27^th minute penalty from skipper Behnam Barzay gave Iran a 2-0 lead to take into the interval at the PAS Stadium.

Sardar Azmoun, scorer of two goals for the senior side at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, made it 3-0 ten minutes into the second half and after Ali Karimi added to the Russia-based winger’s strike with Iran’s fourth in the 67^th minute, Shahin Saghebi rounded off the victory three minutes from full time, with the substitute getting his name on the score sheet ten minutes after coming on to replace captain Barzay.

Iran are not in action again until Friday when they take on Palestine who will be looking to go into the meeting with the Group C hosts having recorded their second win of the campaign when they face Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.

Ten group winners and five best second-placed teams from all groups will join hosts Qatar at the AFC U-23 Championship 2016, with January’s 16-team competition also serving as Asia’s qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games in Rio.

22/03/2015

Iran’s U23 team (Omid Team) will start its long journey for the Rio De Janeiro Olympic Games 2016 Qualification at Azadi Stadium against Nepal on Monday 23^rd March 2015.

The match on Monday is not expected to attract large number of fans due t the Nowrooz holidays and also due to the low expectation from a sting of failure by Iran that has hit this particular age group.

Mohammad Khakpour, a former Team Melli defender has been given this mammoth task and will be making his first attempt at this level of football to take Iran to the Olympics. Last time Iran made the Olympics games was back in 1980 Moscow games which eventually it boycotted.

Group C of the AFC U-23 Championship consists of Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Afghanistan and Iran will be played in Tehran. The final rounds will be played in Qatar nine months from now.

On Paper the group looks easy enough for Iran to make the final championship rounds along with Saudi Arabia. However, with recent Iranian teams performances against inferior oppositions, nothing is taken for granted. Omid Team personal have already been talking about the strength of the Nepalese team, the first of Iran’s opponents. Saudi Arabian teams at any level, of course are always very competitive and difficult to beat.

Palestine has emerged as a strong team at senior level and their U-23 remains as unknown quality. Neighboring Afghanistan has been solidly progressing at football and their players have a good knowledge of Iranian teams.

The squad was boosted with the news that Azmoun and Jahanbakhash will be joining them despite the objection of Team Melli coach Queiroz. A ruling by Ali Kaffashian favored Omid Team and frustrated Queiroz who has considered robbing of these two players from him as the final nail in the coffin.

Schedule & Results:

23-03-2015 15:00
AFGHANISTAN PALESTINE
Venue: PAS Stadium, Tehran
23-03-2015 17:00
NEPAL I.R. IRAN
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran

****************************************************
25-03-2015 15:00
PALESTINE SAUDI ARABIA
Venue: PAS Stadium, Tehran

25-03-2015 17:00
AFGHANISTAN NEPAL
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran

****************************************************

27-03-2015 15:00
SAUDI ARABIA AFGHANISTAN
Venue: PAS Stadium, Tehran
27-03-2015 17:00
I.R. IRAN PALESTINE
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran

****************************************************
29-03-2015 15:00
NEPAL SAUDI ARABIA
Venue: PAS Stadium, Tehran

29-03-2015 17:00
I.R. IRAN AFGHANISTAN
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran

****************************************************

31-03-2015 15:00
PALESTINE NEPAL
Venue: PAS Stadium, Tehran
31-03-2015 17:00
SAUDI ARABIA I.R. IRAN
Venue: Azadi Stadium, Tehran

NEPAL U-23 TEAM SQUAD

GK: Alan Neupane , Amrit Chaudhary , Bikesh Kuthu

DF: Man Bahadur Tamang , Kalu Thapa, Aditya Choudhary , Aakash Thapa , Ananta Tamang , Dinesh Rajbanshi

MF: Gaurab Budhathoki, Heman Gurung , Hemant Thapa Magar , Jagjeet Shrestha , Jangbu Sherpa , Kamal Shrestha , Prakash Budhathoki , Sulav Maskey , Bishal Rai B

FW: Ranjan Bista , Amar Dangol , Biswas Shrestha , Anjan Bista , Bimal Gharti Magar