Coach Koji Gyotoku was left frustrated by his side’s inability to pick up all three points as Nepal were held to a 0-0 draw by Timor-Leste in their opening game of the 2016 AFC Solidarity Cup on Saturday night.
The Nepalese dominated the game, hitting the woodwork twice in a strong second half showing, but it was not enough to deny Timor-Leste a share of the points and leaves Nepal needing a draw against Brunei Darussalam on Tuesday to advance to the semi-finals.
“This was our first match and the result is not enough, it’s not good,” said Nepal’s Japanese coach. “We had a lot of chances and we needed to score but we couldn’t.
“In the next match I think it will be very difficult. We need a point but we have a chance to go to the semi-finals and we have two days to control the players’ condition.”
A draw will take Nepal into the last four, while even a loss against a Brunei side that defeated Timor-Leste 4-0 in their opening game could be enough for the South Asian nation to advance to the knockout phase of the competition.
Gyotoku acknowledged his team’s inability to convert the numerous chances created could continue to be a problem in the competition.
“I think it’s a problem, but there are other problems also,” he said. “We have trained in Nepal but this is the first time we play in a competition and this is a problem and also this weather, with the high humidity (is also a problem). In Nepal, it’s the dry season and it’s not like this so I think the players were a little bit tired.
“When I saw Timor-Leste’s first game against Brunei, in the second half the players stopped, their performance went down and I told the players to continue running behind the defenders and use the space behind them and to go wide. The players did well, but no goal.”
Timor-Leste coach Fabio Joaquim admitted his team have little chance to advance to the next round following their heavy loss against Brunei, but he praised his young side and hopes to see continued improvement from the team.
“We knew today would be a difficult game because in the last game we didn’t have a good result,” he said. “We knew we had to win this game or it’s difficult for us to qualify.
“The problem is that in the first game it rained a lot and we couldn’t do our own game that we would like to play. We also have a lot of young players and I’m satisfied with them. Most of them are under 19 and step by step they will get more experience and will be better for that.
“What I saw in this competition, the level of the teams is almost the same. I look at the teams and they are on the same level, there are some details which will decide who goes to the semi-final and the final.”
