AFC Asian Cup: India end disastrous campaign with 1-0 loss to Syria

Igor Stimac and his Indian side ended the AFC Asian Cup 2024 at the bottom of the table. It was a sad end to the tournament as the Blue Tigers lost to Syria thanks to a goal by Omar Khribin in the 76th minute. 

Team India had begun the tournament with a 2-0 loss to Australia. This was followed by a 3-0 loss to Uzbekistan during the tournament. Despite the two losses, India still had a chance to progress to the next round. 

Sunil Chettri and his side had to win on Tuesday to entertain hopes of qualifying for the next round. The best third-placed team had a chance to make it to the round of sixteen but the loss to Syria has put paid to the hopes. 

India’s football campaign ends with loss – 

Team India lost to Syria with a 1-0 margin to exit the AFC Asian Cup tournament. Omar Khribin ended the Indian hopes with a goal with fourteen minutes left in the game. Gurpreet Singh Sandhu didn’t have a chance to save the goal as the Syrian players were overjoyed. 

Igor Stimac will be sad as the Croatian manager has made a lot of progress with the team. The AFC Asian Cup 2024 represented a great chance for the Indian team to show their talents. 

What will frustrate the Indian coach even more is the fact the entire tournament ended without a goal. The only time India looked like scoring a goal was against Australia during the first game. 

Indian skipper Sunil Chettri saw his header go wide after a sustained period of pressure. In all of the three games so far, the Indian defense has been a huge letdown. The game against Uzbekistan in particular has seen India’s backline make schoolboy errors.

Many experts though lauded the resilience shown by the blues during the tournament. With a congested fixture for the qualifying tournament set to take place, India will use this tournament as a proper lesson. 

The players now head back to India and will play in the Indian Super League. With many more matches set to take place in 2024, Indian football will look to rectify their mistakes. Australia, meanwhile look set to do well in the tournament and win the tournament once again.