Indonesian friendly game was a mistake

Yet another lackluster performance and defeat for the national team of Nepal in a friendly against Indonesia.  I am not   surprised, and it should not surprise anyone.

In fact, the result   was well anticipated and has brought more agony, frustration and disillusionment to fans in particular. Ironically, All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) largely remains unaffected because they are too busy pushing their own self serving agendas.

This was the fourth exhibition match Team Nepal played since its unsuccessful appearance in the last SAFF Championship in Kathmandu. The latest defeat was the fourth in a row. Prior to this they played against India, Yemen and Philippines.

Undoubtedly, friendly matches are important, necessary and should   be arranged whenever possible. It provides players the much needed exposure, and coaches are rendered valuable opportunity to work on various   aspect   of   the team dynamics   and   assess   individual and team   performance. Also it   offers  new  faces   the perfect platform to showcase their talents.

Having said that, even if it means friendly or exhibition or whatever you may want to call, has to be taken seriously. There must be some degree of readiness and preparedness on part of the team. National pride and fans emotions are at stake.

Players will need to be in   form, physically fit and   in the right frame   of   mind. Otherwise, the game becomes totally irrelevant and players end up carrying   the brunt of fans resentment.

Every match   has   to   be   meticulously planned in advance so that the   coaching staff    gets adequate time to prepare the team   accordingly. The   sole purpose   is to make the most out of  warm up matchs.

This   important aspect has been largely ignored by ANFA, and,    I   guess   they will never learn from their mistakes.  In the   four friendly matches, the team struggled and was embarrassingly under prepared for it.

And on top of   that   the   recent exhibition match was held in the midst of the World Cup. Since start of the competition most players have been spending sleepless nights, watching matches. It made/makes them physically exhausted and mentally drained. They were not ready for the match.

The   Indonesian   exhibition game was a mistake   in the first place. Out of the blue ANFA announced the game and   there   was   no way the team could be prepared on such short notice.

With only a week’s training they were off to Indonesia and paid the price. The football body don’t give a damn what anybody   thinks   or says. And it has always been this way.

It is doubly disappointing Coach   Stefanwoski   reduced himself   to   a spectator. he coach   is expected   to display and maintain the highest level of responsibility and professionalism. He should   not work under pressure and allow ANFA   to dictate.

The   team and   players’ interest   will not be best served. The coach is no stranger to ANFA and he should best serve the interest of the team regardless of the situation. Failure to do so can hurt him professionally in my opinion.

I guess the friendly game was   just Mr. Ganesh Thapa’s   ploy to distract us from the corruption scandal surrounding him.

To add, foreign coaches are not solution to our declining football   standards. Long as people like Mr. Ganesh Thapa and his supporters are at the helm of affairs, nothing will change.