NEW DELHI: India squandered a 1-0 lead to suffer a 1-4 defeat at the hands of Lebanon in their away leg Soccer World Cup qualifier at Saida yesterday.
The Nehru Cup champions took the lead at the half-hour mark through Sunil Chhetri, but could not hold on to the advantage. Bob Houghton's charges now have a mountain to climb in the home leg in Chennai on October 28, if they want to have any chance of progressing to the second round of the competition. They need at least a 3-0 victory to go through.
Al Nejmeh sharpshooter Mohamad Ghaddar, who was instrumental in the defeat of Mahindra United in the AFC Cup quarterfinals last month, again spelt trouble for the Indians by scoring a brace (61st and 7th minutes). Roda Antar (35th) and Mahmoud El Ali (62nd) got the other two goals for the hosts last night.
The result would be all the more disappointing for India as the teams were very close on the FIFA rankings with Lebanon just a notch above India at 144th. Moreover, the euphoria generated by the Nehru Cup win at home had raised expectations.
The home team started on the offensive but it was the Indians who went ahead in the 30th minute thanks to a defensive lapse which allowed Chhetri to tap the ball home. But that was the only joy for the Bhaichung Bhutia-led side as the Lebanese hit back hard. The lead lasted only five minutes as Antar equalized when he received a pass from the right of the penalty area and beat custodian Subrata Paul to find the top corner.
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