Even as the Indian men's football team's hopes of winning the Intercontinental Cup for the third time were dashed as it lost to Syria 0-3 on Monday (September 9, 2024), the side is set to compete in another tri-nation tournament, the next month. (More Football News)
The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) has officially announced that a tri-nation friendly tournament involving India, Vietnam and Lebanon will be held in the Thien Truong Stadium in Vietnam from October 9 to 15. In the latest FIFA rankings, Vietnam is placed 115th, Lebanon 116th, and India 124th, making this a highly competitive event.
With the All India Football Federation (AIFF) seeking to organize more quality international fixtures, this will be the second tournament for the Blue Tigers under their newly appointed head coach Manolo Marquez.
The fixture, however, will fall in the middle of the Indian Super League (ISL) season, testing Manolo’s ability to juggle club and country duties, as he is also the manager of FC Goa. The Spanish tactician will certainly see this as an opportunity to implement improvements in the wake of India's disappointing defeat to Syria in the last league game of the Intercontinental Cup.
Vietnam will enter the tournament with a managerial change, as Kim Sang-sik was appointed to lead the outfit in May this year. Meanwhile, Lebanon will compete under the mentorship of Miodrag Radulovic, aiming to secure their first competitive trophy in his tenure.
As the gap in the three teams' FIFA rankings is not much, it is likely to be an closely-contested tournament with no team going in as the favourites.
Schedule
October 9: Vietnam vs India
October 12: India vs Lebanon
October 15: Vietnam vs Lebanon
