Nepal are taking on Brunei in their second and final Group ‘A’ match of the AFC Solidarity Cup with very little to do, as suggested by the pool equation.

After playing a goalless draw against Timor-Leste in their first match, Nepal’s progress into the semi-finals is assured even if they lose the match by at least three-goal margin at the Negeri Stadium in Kuching, Malaysia. Nepal stay second in the points table on goal difference after they were tied on one point with Timor-Leste. Timor-Leste were hammered 4-0 in their opening game by Brunei and with Nepal yet to concede a goal in the tournament, they are all but guaranteed a place in the semi-finals.

But Nepal’s Japanese coach Gyotoku Koji wants his boys to pull their socks up. “We need to be aware of the opponents as they are on a high following their big victory in the first match. But we have had two days to prepare ourselves after the last match and we are hopeful of putting up a strong performance,” Koji told the official website of the All Nepal Football Association.

Koji added Nepal’s performance will depend much on how the ground fares. “The pitch is very soggy. So the ground condition will have its final say on our performance. But we should be ready to play in any condition and any pitch so that we can improve our level,” the coach said adding the main aim of the team would be to amend mistakes from the first game.

Koji was worried about Nepal’s wayward shooting from the midfield and lack of finishing as the South Asians missed a string of scoring chances—four of them alone came from striker Nawayug Shrestha. The Brunei game will be an opportunity for Shrestha and his striking partner Bimal Gharti

Magar to regain their finishing prowess.

Anjan Bista, Heman Gurung, Bikram Lama will look after the midfield but question lingers on the inclusion of Sujal Shrestha who went off against Timor-Leste. Bishal Rai is a probable candidate to replace Sujal. Biraj Maharjan, Ananta Tamang, Aditya Chaudhary and Rabin Shrestha are expected to be retained along with goalkeeper Kiran Chemjong.

Brunei’s Korean coach Kwon Oh-son was not in the mood to take Nepal lightly despite their resounding victory over Timor-Leste. “Nepal are one of the title contenders so we would look to avoid any upset against them,” said Kwon adding he will rest several of his players for Tuesday’s game. “Several of our players sustained ankle injuries and require recovery time. As we are already in the semi-finals, we do not want to take any risk with them,” the coach added.

In the only encounter between the two sides, Brunei had defeated Nepal 2-1 in the 2006 AFC Challenge Cup, a tournament which is now replaced by the ongoing Solidarity Cup.