*SAFF Women's Club Championship 2025 Preview: Unbeaten East Bengal Women aim for league stage supremacy against Nepal's APF FC*. Photo BS News Agency.
Sudipa Chakraborty, BS News Agency, Kathmandu Nepal: The inaugural SAFF Women's Club Championship reaches its final round-robin fixture tomorrow (Kickoff - 5.45 PM IST) at Kathmandu's Dashrath Stadium, with East Bengal FC taking on Nepal's APF FC in a sort of "dress rehearsal" before the final that will feature the same two sides on December 20 at the same venue.
Despite the two teams already securing their spots in the final, the match holds some significance as the winner will finish top of the league stage in the five-team tournament.
East Bengal FC have been in impeccable form in the tournament so far. The Indian Women's League champions have secured clean sheet victories in all their first three matches, scoring as many as 13 goals in the process. The Kolkata-based club currently occupies the top spot with nine points from three games.
EBFC Women started their campaign with a 4-0 victory over Bhutan's Transport United Ladies FC before beating Pakistan's Karachi City FC 2-0 in their second outing.
The Red & Gold Women's recent outing saw Ugandan forward Fazila Ikwaput run riot with a five-goal haul in a 7-0 victory over Bangladesh's Nasrin SA, taking her goal tally to seven in the competition.
APF FC, on the other hand, have secured two wins and a draw from their first three games. They began their campaign with a 4-0 win over Nasrin SA, before being held to a goalless draw by Transport United Ladies. They secured their ticket to the final with a 1-0 win over Karachi City last Sunday.
*Speaking to the media on the eve of the match, EBFC Women's Head Coach Anthony Andrews said*, "Many of these APF players have played on the Indian circuit in the past, so we are aware of what they can bring to the table. We'll play two consecutive games against them, so it's a good opportunity for us to gauge our own strengths and weaknesses before we face them again in the final."
The match can be streamed live on the MSM Video app.