Overview
India will go head-to-head against Lebanon in the final round-robin fixture of the Hero InterContinental Cup on Thursday, June 15, at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Sunil Chhetri and his boys have already sealed their place in the final of the ongoing tournament after defeating Mongolia and Vanuatu in their previous encounters, while a draw would be enough for Lebanon to book their berth in the Final.
India enter the match on the back of 1-0 victory over valiant Vanuatu after starting their campaign with a 2-0 win over Mongolia. Lebanon opened their campaign with a convincing 3-1 victory over Vanuatu, but failed to maintain that momentum in a goalless draw against Mongolia.
Despite securing their spot in the final, the Blue Tigers will go all guns blazing for a victory against Lebanon to cement their place in the top 100 of the FIFA rankings, as that will increase India’s chances to secure a spot in Pot 2 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifying Draw.
Igor Stimac, India’s coach, made nine changes in the last encounter against Vanuatu, with only Sunil Chhetri and Sandesh Jhingan retaining their places from the playing XI against Mongolia. With the final of the tournament on Sunday, Stimac may not play his best XI against Lebanon, though he will also want to identify his main weapons before the much awaited Asian Cup, to be held in Qatar in January 2024.
One area of concern for India would be their conversion rate in front of goal. Despite having more possession and creating numerous opportunities, they managed only two shots on target (from 23) against Vanuatu. Stimac would look to address this issue and demand that his team are more clinical in front of goal against Lebanon.
Head-to-Head
Lebanon have dominated the head-to-head battle, securing three wins in their last six meetings, while India have managed to win only once.
Current Form
Lebanon’s recent form has been disappointing, with six losses in their last eight matches. India will look to extend their unbeaten home run, which now stands at seven matches.
Predicted XI
India: Gurpreet Sandhu (GK), Sandesh Jhingan, Anwar Ali, Akash Mishra, Pritam Kotal, Apuia, Anirudh Thapa, Sahal Abdul Samad, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Naorem Mahesh, Sunil Chhetri.
Lebanon: Ali Sabeh (GK), Wali Shour, Jehad Ayob, Hussein El Zain, Mohammed AL Hayek, Nader Matar, Ali Tneich, Soony Saad, Zein Farran, Hassan Maatouk, Karim Darwiche.
