Nepalese fixed game to benefit Azkals?

MANILA, Philippines - Nepal national football team players linked to match-fixing reportedly weaved their magic here when the team played and lost to the Philippine Azkals, 0-4, in a friendly at Rizal Memorial Stadium back in 2011.

This came out on the report of the Kathmandu Valley Metropolitan Police Crime Division, which last week arrested team captain Sagar Thapa, Sandip Rai, Ritesh Thapa, Bikash Singh Chhetri and Anjan KC over allegations of match-fixing.

According to Nepal police, the suspects fixed matches from 2008 to 2014. One of those was the Oct. 2011 friendly in Manila, where the Gorkhalis conceded four goals to the Azkals via the brace of Phil Younghusband and a goal each from James Younghusband and Matt Hartmann.

Nepal police reported that the suspects “were given $5,000 each to lose 4-0 to the Philippines.”

Nepal and the Azkals met in another friendly last year in Doha, Qatar with the Filipinos prevailing again, 3-0, but this game was not included in the list of “fixed matches,” Nepal police revealed after its probe which it shared on its Facebook page.

Other matches in the list were a 2011 friendly in Malaysia, which had the Malaysians winning, 2-0; a 2008 Merdeka Cup game with Afghanistan, which ended in a 2-2 draw; and a 2012 Nehru Cup match with Cameroon, which saw Nepal losing 0-5.