Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
New Delhi: India will host neighbours Nepal in a friendly on August 31, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has announced.
The game will be played at the Balewadi Stadium in Pune, and is being viewed by India as a key part of their preparations ahead of a crunch FIFA World Cup 2018 and AFC Asian Cup 2019 qualifier against Iran in Bengaluru on September 8.
The two sides met as recently as March during the first stage of joint qualifiers, with India beating Nepal 2-0 in Guwahati, before going through to the next phase thanks to a 0-0 draw in Kathmandu.
Speaking of the August fixture, India head coach Stephen Constantine told the AIFF’s official website: “The players will be coming back after a layoff and the match will help us judge them ahead of our tough challenge against Iran.
“Nepal are tough opponents as we saw in Guwahati and Kathmandu and we are looking to welcome Nepal back to international football after the tragedy which struck the Himalayan Kingdom,” he concluded.
Photo: AIFF