Two days after a titanic tussle against highly fancied Iraq in the semifinal of the King’s Cup, India’s tournament ended with a demoralising 1-0 defeat to Lebanon – a side they had beaten in the Intercontinental Cup final in June – in the third-place play-off in the stifling heat and pouring rain in Chiang Mai.
The crucial goal, almost predictably given the lack of quality from both sides in the final third, came from a set piece in the 77th minute. Ali Al Haj swung in a corner, and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu made a stupendous save to keep out a bullet header from Maher Sabra. As the ball lobbed back into the goalmouth, Kassem El Zein seemed to be in an offside position. But if his positioning was questioning, there was no dispute about the quality of the finish, a fabulous bicycle kick that arrowed into the far corner. Gurpreet and his teammates protested long and hard, but with no Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in operation, the on-field decision stood. Sandesh Jhingan, who captained India on the night, called it a ‘joke’ after the game.
Again, India started the match slowly, with the Lebanese press making it hard for them to find any coherence in their passing. But against the run of play, it was India that caused the first flutter, as Naorem Mahesh slipped Manvir Singh in with a lovely pass. Manvir seemed to have sped past the centre-backs, but Mohamed Shour recovered superbly to ward off danger. Two minutes later, the two combined again, as Mahesh swung in a cross from the left. This time, Manvir’s header was over the bar.
Asish Rai was having an excellent game from right-back, and two nutmegs midway through the first half livened up the Indian contingent inside the stadium. But Lebanon defending stolidly, and chances were at a premium for both teams. Ali Tneich, who had earlier been accidentally stamped on by Akash Mishra, was lucky to get away with just a yellow card after a reckless sliding tackle on Anirudh Thapa, and Mohamad Haidar also went into the book after bundling down Lallianzuala Chhangte, who had been a peripheral figure in the opening half hour.
The best opening of the half fell to Thapa, who made a complete hash of his finish after a high ball from Anwar Ali had sent him clear. When the game resumed, Lebanon came close, with Bassel Jradi running at the defence and drawing the two centre-backs before slipping Haidar clear. But his attempted finish was straight at Gurpreet.
India were sloppy with possession at the start of the second half, and didn’t create much of note even when the passes started to stick a bit more. Lebanon continued to look dangerous on the counter, and a poorly hit pass from Sahal Abdul Samad nearly put Gurpreet in trouble.
After the contentious Lebanese goal, Chhangte blazed over when slid in by Nikhil Poojary, but with India pushing forward in numbers, the side ranked a place below them in the FIFA rankings always look a threat on the counter. In the fourth minute of added-on time, with the rain bucketing down, Chhangte curled in another high cross towards the far post. But Rahul KP and Rohit Kumar, who had both come on as substitutes, got in each other’s way as India’s final good chance went harmlessly wide. It summed up their 90 minutes.