Following a 6-0 drubbing of Sri Lanka, a high-spirited Nepali national football team takes on India in the second semifinal of the SAFF U-16 Championship Football Tournament at the Dasharath Stadium on Monday.

Nepal entered the last four as the winner of Group B with the win over the Lankans and a goalless draw against Bangladesh. India finished runner-up of Group A beating Maldives 5-0 after going down 1-0 against Pakistan in the opener.

The match between Nepal and India can be expected to be competitive as both the teams are vying to lift the trophy of the first edition.

Nepal has played only once against India in the age group in the past. The match, which was played six years ago, had ended in a 1-1 draw.

"As we are aiming to lift the trophy and erase the bitter memory of the last edition of the AFC U-16 Qualifiers, we will surely be playing against India for victory," Nepal´s coach Sunil Kumar Shrestha told Republica.

India coach Thomas Joseph, following his side´s entry into the semifinals, had said, "It does not matter who will be against us in the semifinal -- Nepal or Pakistan, we´ll play to win."

Nepal will have the advantage of home ground and home crowd while the well-built Indian team will have the physical advantage over the home team.

Both the teams will miss a first choice player. India will miss its midfielder K Lalramzauva as he picked up two yellow cards against the Maldives, while Nepal will miss its in-form striker Rungri Hang Rai. Rai received a yellow card each in the group stage matches against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

As on previous occasions, Nepal will come up with an attacking strategy in 3-5-2 formation. "We will play attacking football and either Anil Gurung or Suraj Hamal will play in Rai´s position. There will be no other changes in the team," Shrestha said.

Coach Shrestha was confident regarding his defense line-up. He said, "We have a strong defense line-up and midfield is good, but the forwards have not been able to play up to their potential."