The Indian football team lost to Syria 0-3 in the last league match of the three-nation tournament with this loss Indian team's hopes of winning the Intercontinental Cup title for the third time were dashed at the GMC Balayogi Athletics Stadium.
Mahmoud Al Aswad and Daleho Mohsen Irandust scored for Syria in the seventh and 77th minutes to break the hearts of the home crowd. While Pablo Sabbag's strike in the injury time was a mere underlining of Syria's dominance.
The outcome marked a challenging start for Manolo Marquez in his new role as the head coach of the Indian national football team, following his appointment in July. Marquez took over from Igor Stimac, and his debut was marred by disappointment.
In the tournament, Syria secured a 2-0 victory over Mauritius in their opening match, finishing the round-robin stage with a total of six points. Meanwhile, both India and Mauritius concluded the competition with just one point each. The two teams played to a goalless draw on September 3, which ultimately left them both struggling at the bottom of the standings. Marquez’s initial stint thus began with an underwhelming result, highlighting the challenges ahead as he seeks to improve India's performance on the international stage.
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The highest-ranked team after the round-robin league wins the tournament and there is no final. India had won the title in 2018 and 2023, while it was the first trophy for Syria who had finished third in 2019.
In fact, this was the first time Syria won a title on Indian soil. The West Asian country has a long history of playing tournaments in India, but a title has eluded them before Monday. Syria lost back-to-back Nehru Cup finals to India in 2007 and 2009 before finishing fourth in 2012.
In their last trip to India in the 2019 Intercontinental Cup, Syria ended in third place. In that tournament, the two teams played out a 1-1 draw. In the last meeting between the two teams, Syria had beaten India 1-0 in the Asian Cup in Qatar in January.
With inputs from PTI
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