Kathmandu, July 21
In the final and decisive match of the ongoing SAFF U-20 Women’s Championship in Bangladesh, Nepal will face defending champions Bangladesh today.
The match will be held at Bashundhara Kings Arena and is scheduled to begin at 6:45 PM Nepali time. The result of this match will determine the winner of this edition of the SAFF U-20 Championship.
At present, Bangladesh holds the advantage, while Nepal is under pressure to secure a win. A draw will be enough for Bangladesh to clinch the title, but Nepal do not have any option rather than winning.
In their previous encounter, Nepal lost 3–2 to Bangladesh.
The host nation currently sits at the top of the table with 15 points from five consecutive wins, while Nepal is in second place with 12 points from four wins and one loss. Nepal defeated Bhutan and Sri Lanka twice each.
So far, Bangladesh is leading Nepal by 3 points. Therefore, Nepal must beat Bangladesh to equalise the point. If that happens, goal difference will determine the champion.
So far, Nepal has scored 30 goals and conceded 4, while Bangladesh has scored 24 goals and also conceded 4. In the head-to-head record, Bangladesh has a slight edge due to their earlier 3–2 victory.
If Nepal defeats Bangladesh by a two-goal margin, they will automatically become champions. If Nepal wins by just one goal, both teams will be tied on points and head-to-head goal difference. In that case, the overall goal difference will come into play, which currently favours Nepal.
Thus, today’s match is a ‘do-or-die’ clash for Nepal.
The championship features four teams and follows a double round-robin format, where the team with the highest points at the end is crowned the champion.
