IndiavsLebanon: India and Lebanon will clash in the final of the Intercontinental Cup, the team will repeat the charisma of 2018
Bhubaneswar. When the Indian football team takes on Lebanon in the final of the Intercontinental Cup on Sunday, it will be a challenge to repeat the success of 2018. The contest will also be exciting as Indian coach Igor Stimac and his Lebanese counterpart Alexander Ilic played together for Spanish club Sidij CF in 1994. The two have mutual respect for each other but Stimac would like his team not to repeat the mistakes made during the round-robin match against Lebanon in the final.
In this match played on Thursday, the Indian team had two easy chances to score but the team failed to capitalize on it. Anirudh Thapa missed an easy chance in the fourth minute of the match. The same thing happened with veteran Sunil Chhetri as well. The Croatia coach has made big changes in all the three matches against Mongolia, Vanuatu and Lebanon so far and his tactics could spring a surprise in the title clash as well. India won the title by defeating Kenya 2-0 in the final of this tournament in 2018 but in its next season in 2019, the team finished fourth and last. After winning 2-0 against Mongolia, the Indian team beat Vanuatu 1-0 thanks to Chhetri’s goal.
The coach made 10 changes for the match against Lebanon, with goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and Chhetri missing from the starting XI. Defender Sandesh Jhingan took over the captaincy in Chhetri’s absence against Lebanon. Stimac said on the eve of the final match, “In the last match we could not score but I don’t think we did anything wrong. I don’t think we need to change things. We need players with more pace and energy, ready to respond to the physical game played by Lebanon.”
Stimac, who was a member of the Croatian team that finished third in the 1998 World Cup in France, said, “The only message we have given to the players is to stay calm and focused.” Keep your eye on the ball and make sure that opportunities are converted into goals. He said that the only worry for the team is Ishan Pandita’s injury. Pandita had injured his thigh in the match against Vanuatu. This match will be played from 07:30 pm.
