Nepali national football team has lost to Australia in the final match of the World Cup and Asian Cup qualifiers. Nepal was limited to 10 players in the second half and lost 3-0 to Australia. Nepal scored the first goal in the sixth minute at the Jaber Al-Ahmed Stadium in Kuwait. Matthew Leakey of Australia gave the lead against Nepal by scoring a goal.
With 7 minutes left in the first half, Fran Karachic doubled Australia’s lead by scoring again. Veteran defender Rohit Chand was sent off for a red card during the injury time of the first half.
Rohit Chand was sent off in the 44th minute of the match. The referee showed Martin Boyle a red card for a foul on a one-on-one situation outside the penalty area.
Nepal, which is 130 places above itself, played a good defensive game against Australia in the last 45 minutes despite being limited to 10 players. Nepal’s captain and goalkeeper Kiran Chemjong saved many goals in the continuous attack of Australia. Ayush Ghalan, Suraj Jeu Thakuri and Kamal Thapa, who were included in the team for the first time for Nepal, made their debut.
With this defeat, Nepal’s chances of reaching the third round of the Asian Cup qualifiers are over. Now Nepal has to cross the playoff stage to reach the third stage. The bottom teams of all groups and the weakest four teams in fourth place will compete in the playoffs. Australia, meanwhile, have qualified for the third round of the World Cup and the Asian Cup with 21 points from seven games. Nepal finished fourth with six points from eight games.
