Syria slot three goals past India to lift Intercontinental Cup
India’s woes continue as they suffered a 0-3 loss against Syria in the final game of the Intercontinental Cup at the Gachibowli Stadium on Monday.
India’s woes continue as they suffered a 0-3 loss against Syria in the final game of the Intercontinental Cup at the Gachibowli Stadium on Monday.
A new-look Gachibowli Athletic Stadium in the historic city of Hyderabad will welcome the players and spectators alike as the three-nation Intercontinental Cup kicks off on September 3.
Both finalists were the two lowest-ranked teams of the four-nation tournament, the other participants being hosts India and Syria.
The minister also heaped praise on the Indian women's team for their recent rise in the FIFA rankings which were released on 12 July.
It is to be noted that India had already lost their previous matches in the tournament to Tajikistan and North Korea and are hence out of the race for the final of the tournament.
After North Korea managed to edge past Tajikistan 1-0 on Monday, the India-Syria match on Tuesday does not have much of a significance for the home side.
With two losses in as many games, India still have a chance of making it to the final, provided they beat Syria by a huge margin in their next match, and hope Tajikistan beat DPR Korea in the other.
In what was a game of two halves, Sunil Chhetri's brace put India in the driver's seat in the first half before Tajikistan scored four goals after the breather to win the game.
Syria at 83 is the best ranked team to feature in the competition. While India ranks 101, Tajikistan and DPR Korea are positioned at 120 and 121, respectively.
While the Intercontinental Cup win will give boost to the preparation for Asian Cup, much work needs to be done still.
