India Face Syria, Aim For Successive Intercontinental Cup Titles

Hosts India and Syria will go head to head in the winner-takes-it-all third and final game of the Intercontinental Cup trophy on Monday. India, who began the competition with a goalless draw against Mauritius on Tuesday, are eyeing their second consecutive Intercontinental Cup triumph, and third overall. Syria beat Mauritius 2-0 on Friday, which means they hold a slight advantage heading into the final game as the Eagles of Qasioun require only a draw to claim the trophy. Syria have a long history of playing tournaments in India, but the title has always evaded them. The West Asians lost back-to-back Nehru Cup finals to India in 2007 and 2009 before finishing fourth in 2012.

In their last trip to India in the 2019 Intercontinental Cup, Syria ended in third place. But for the Blue Tigers to deny them a first silverware on Indian soil, they will need to end a winless streak stretching back to November last year.

"It will be a difficult game for both sides. It's a friendly game, but the team who wins the game wins the trophy. We expect to play a good game and win the tournament," said India head coach Manolo Márquez, who celebrated his 56th birthday on Saturday.

But the Spaniard also noted that the need of the hour for the national team is to play good football, and the results will follow.

"If you ask me, I prefer to play a good game than to win the tournament. I don't want to win it 1-0, scoring with the hand. I want that, in this moment, the team understands our ideas and we play better because finally, it's not about winning or losing.

"You need to arrive at a style of play and that's what we are focusing on. Obviously when you win, the confidence grows and then it's easier. But finally now it's about that we believe