India faces Lebanon, aims to break into top-100
India had achieved its best-ever FIFA rankings of 94 in February 1996 in the golden era of Bhaichung Bhutia and IM Vijayan. As for Lebanon, it’s a do-or-die opportunity after failing to beat Mongolia.
BHUBANESWAR: Buoyant India will take on a higher-ranked Lebanon with an aim to break into top-100 in FIFA rankings, in its last round-robin clash of the Intercontinental Cup, here on Thursday.
In pursuit of a second title, the Blue Tigers have sealed a spot in the final with wins over Mongolia and Vanuatu, which will serve as a prelude to Sunday’s summit clash for the Igor Stimac-coached side.
The match is crucial for India as Lebanon is currently placed at 99 and the host at 101, and a win for the Blue Tigers will see them overtake the Cedars and break into the top-100 again. Incidentally, India’s Intercontinental Cup triumph in its inaugural edition in 2018 also saw it break into top-100 the last time.
India had achieved its best-ever FIFA rankings of 94 in February 1996 in the golden era of Bhaichung Bhutia and IM Vijayan. As for Lebanon, it’s a do-or-die opportunity after failing to beat Mongolia.
“We’re playing at home, and we come out in every game with the only aim of winning it,” said Stimac. It doesn’t matter how Lebanon fared in its previous game. It found it tough to play two games at four in the afternoon. “For us, it’s going to be a difficult match, as some of its players have enormous quality. It does have weaknesses also, of course, which we could see,” the Croat added.