Ratings: Lebanon beat India to secure King's Cup third-place finish

India's King's Cup journey ended on a negative note.

India succumbed to yet another defeat in the King's Cup as their opponents Lebanon secured the much-needed revenge. A brilliant back volley from Kassem El Zein in the 77th minute ensured the Cedars a third-place finish and a bronze medal in the competition.

On that note, here's a look at how the players from both teams delivered on the pitch.

Lebanon Player Ratings (By Gourav Samal)

Mehdi Khalil - 6

Khalil had too little to do in the match, as India's most attacks were nicely tackled by the backline.

Abdullah Moughrabi - 6.5

Moughrabi was a good help for Kassem in keeping the Indian forwards away from their net.

Kassem El Zein - 7.5

The best player of the match. The tackle to keep Chhangte away from scoring a goal and a brilliant clearance in the 58th minute shall be the talking points of the match. And of course, his acrobatic goal ultimately became the difference between the two sides.

Walid Shour - 6

Walid produced some nice tackles and was present for some important clearances at the right point of time.

Mohamad Haidar - 6.5

The Captain was replaced in the second half but played his part well. Tried his luck in the 48th minute to score a goal but was averted by Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.

Jihad Ayoub - 6.5

Ayoub wasn’t seen much effective in the first half but in the second half, he raised his game.

Maher Sabra - 6

The midfielder was seen with some nice crosses in the middle of the game.  

Hassan Saad - 6.5

Saad was also very effective in the second half, both while defending and organising the midfield.

Ali Tneich - 6

The experienced player got injured in the second half but during his stay, he made some good moves with some lovely passes.

Nader Matar - 5

Matar was rarely seen doing any tactical moves in the game. 

Bassel Jradi - 6.5

The forward got some good chances of getting into the D-box of India, but couldn’t convert them into goals.

Substitutes

Mahdi Zein - 6.5

Zein delivered two good crosses from the right flank. Although they were not converted into goals, he looked solid in that position.

Karim Darwich - 5.5

Came in as a substitute for Bassel. Was on the field for more than 30 mins but was less effective as compared to Bassel. 

Ali Al Haj - 5.5

Replaced the captain in the second half. Made some good short passes.

Hassan Kourani - N/A

Came to the field to replace an injured player. Had too little time to showcase his skills. 

Hassan Srour - N/A

Srour replaced Tneich who was seen in pain for a long time. He received very less time to prove his game skills.

https://youtu.be/pBLg0YuBXAE

India (By Sonal Fernandes)

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu - 6

Hardly called upon to make any saves. Mostly involved in possession of the ball and did well to keep the ball moving with rarely looking to go long. Brilliantly saved the header from the corner from which the goal came but could not do much about the rebound back volley.

Asish Rai - 7

Showed glimpses of brilliance early on with some exquisite touches to get past his man. Linked well with Lallianzuala Chhangte on the right wing.

Anwar Ali - 5

Kept it solid at the back but had a loss of concentration in conceding the corner and then looked lost when the resulting corner was swung into the box and cost India the first goal.

Sandesh Jhingan - 6

Reliable as usual, would have wanted to do better with Lebanon’s goal but he cannot be blamed for it.

Akash Mishra - 7

Impressive at the start. Defensively steady and provided width in attack at every opportunity.

Jeakson Singh - 6

Provided good cover in front of the defence.

Anirudh Thapa - 6

Was on the other side of some tough tackles made by the Lebanon midfield early on but held his ground well.

Sahal Abdul Samad - 7

Glimpses of calmness in possession but could not provide the forwards with some much-needed supply.

Lallianzuala Chhangte - 5

Provided good width but should have done better when in possession of the ball.

Manvir Singh - 6

Willing runner throughout the match. Had half a chance to score from a cross but sent the ball over the crossbar.

Naorem Mahesh Singh - 6

Started slowly but could not provide the much-needed creativity on the wings. One of his crosses fell on Manvir Singh's head but the latter headed it over.

Substitutes

Brandon Fernandes - 7

Heavily involved from the get-go. Always looked to pass forward and link up with the upfront. Put some good crosses into the box but was let down by the attackers. 

Nikhil Poojary - 6

Did well after replacing Asish Rai at half time.

Rohit Kumar - 6.5

Not much involved since coming on but should have scored in added time.

Suresh Wangjam - 6

In the dying stages shielded a Lebanon forward 1v1 to deny the opponents their second goal.

Rahul KP - 6

Had moments when he could have found a teammate but chose the wrong option.