Kathmandu: Nepal’s disastrous AFC Asian Cup qualification Group ‘F’ campaign ended without a win, as they suffered a 1–0 defeat to Laos in their final third-round match at the Lao National Stadium on Tuesday.

Nepal had also lost 2–1 to the same opponents in the first leg.

In the debut match of newly appointed head coach Guglielmo Arena, Nepal delivered a below-par performance and remained under pressure throughout.

After a goalless first half, Laos captain Bounphachan Bounkong scored the decisive goal just three minutes into the second half. He finished clinically at the far post, beating goalkeeper Kiran Kumar Limbu after latching onto a precise through pass from Chony Wenpaserth.

Nepal managed just one shot on target throughout the match. Kritish Ratna Chhunju created a late threat with a free-kick into the opposition penalty area, but it failed to produce an equaliser.

Striker Yuvraj Khadka and midfielder Pemba Dorje Lama made their international debuts. Along with them, five players earned their first national team call-ups in this campaign. Khadka started the match, while Lama came on in the second half as a substitute for Dipesh Gurung.

Both Nepal and Laos had already been eliminated from Asian Cup contention, while Vietnam had secured qualification from Group ‘F’ with a game to spare.

In the day’s other fixture, Vietnam defeated Malaysia 3–1 to finish top of the table with a perfect 18 points from six matches.

Despite finishing winless on the pitch, Nepal were awarded three points after Malaysia were found to have fielded ineligible players against both Nepal and Vietnam. Although both sides had initially lost those matches, the results were later overturned to 3–0 victories in their favour.

The match was originally scheduled to be held in Nepal. However, due to the failure of All Nepal Football Association to address minor infrastructure issues, the Dasharath Stadium was deemed unfit by the AFC, forcing Nepal to play as the away side.