|
|
|
|
| AFC Challenge Cup |
|
|
|
| Jang to give reserves a chance |
 |
| With a place in the semi-finals out of their grasp sri Lanka coach Jang Jung is set to give his reserve players a run out against Nepal. |
HYDERABAD – With Sri Lanka out of contention for a place in the semi-finals, coach Jang Jung is likely give the reserve players in his squad an opportunity to play in their final match against Nepal on Monday.
DPR Korea and Myanmar sealed the two tickets from the group on Saturday, allowing Jung to give his fringe players a run-out to gain some invaluable international experience.
"We will try to make some changes to the team," said the South Korean.
"We have some injury worries as our skipper Chathura Weerasingha could only play in the second half of our previous match while Kasun Jayasuriya is doubtful.
“Therefore we might give a chance to other young players to gain more experience. The players will learn from their mistakes against better teams and have more experience."
While Jang was unhappy with the team’s results and performances in earlier matches, he attributed it to their youth and inexperience.
"To be honest, I'm disappointed with the performance of the players in the previous two matches.
"However, they are young and they are learning and developing."
Jang is uncertain about his future as his contract as Sri Lanka coach finishes at the end of the year, pending negotiations between the Korea Football Association and their Sri Lankan counterparts on whether he will continue in the role or not.
Meanwhile, Nepal coach Birat Krishna Shrestha is determined to see his side avoid finishing bottom of the table.
"We will try to motivate the players to get a good performance against Sri Lanka," said Shrestha.
"There is no target out of this game but we will play it for pride and to avoid last place in the group.
"The players were not mentally prepared and there was no coherence in the previous two matches. The midfield was a big problem for us as the players couldn't link up the front line with the defence in a proper manner.
"We might use the players who played in the first game against Myanmar," added Shrestha who made seven changes for Saturday’s 1-0 loss to DPR Korea.
"We will give them another chance to prove themselves and hopefully they can take their chance well.
"This tournament gave us a chance to gain more experience as it is always useful to play at such competitions," Shrestha said of the AFC Challenge Cup.
"The more games you play the more international experience you get regardless of the result."
|
|
|
|
|
|
