Agencies
NAM DINH (VIETNAM), Oct 12: Head coach Manolo Marquez will seek his first win with Team India in an international friendly against Vietnam here on Saturday which was originally planned as a Tri-Nation tournament before Lebanon's withdrawal.
Lebanon pulled out, citing difficulties in flying out of the country due to the ongoing crisis at home. The tournament was planned in the FIFA international match window from October 7-15.
Originally, India were scheduled to play against Vietnam on October 9 and Lebanon on October 12 in the tournament at the Thien Truong Stadium here, around 100 km from Hanoi.
In In Marquez's two matches as head coach so far, India drew against Mauritius and lost 0-3 to Syria in the Intercontinental Cup in Hyderabad last month as the Spaniard will be eager to log his first victory on Saturday.
Ranked 116th, Vietnam are 10 spots higher than India (126th) in the FIFA rankings.
The two teams have faced each other three times since the start of the current century.
In 2004, Vietnam defeated India 1-2 in the LG Cup in Ho Chi Minh City. In 2010, former captain Sunil Chhetri scored a hat-trick as the Blue Tigers won 3-1 in Pune. Their last encounter was in 2022, when Vietnam won 3-0 against the Igor Stimac-coached India in Ho Chi Minh City.
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