After cancellation of tri-nation tourney, India to play Vietnam on Oct 12 in football friendly

The Indian men's football team will play an international friendly against Vietnam on October 12 following the cancellation of a tri-nation tournament in the South East Asian country.

Lebanon pulled out of the tri-nation event, 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.

India were earlier scheduled to play against Vietnam on October 9 and Lebanon on October 12 in the tournament at the Thien Truong Stadium in Nam Dịnh, around 100 km from Hanoi.

"The Indian senior men's team will face Vietnam in a one-off friendly match on Saturday, October 12, 2024, following the withdrawal of Lebanon from the tri-nation friendly tournament," the All India Football Federation (AIFF) said in a statement.

"The match will be played at the Thien Trưong Stadium in Nam Dịnh, and will be designated as an official friendly, with points counting towards the FIFA Rankings." The AIFF said it requested the host federation to reschedule the Vietnam-India match, which was earlier scheduled for October 9.

Earlier, the Vietnam Football Federation announced Lebanon's pulling out of tournament.

"The Lebanese team along with the Indian team are the two guest teams that will come to Vietnam to play a friendly match with the Vietnamese team during the FIFA tournament in October 2024.

"However, according to the latest information from the Lebanese Football Federation, there are currently difficulties in flying from this country," the VFF said in a statement.

"VFF shares the difficulties of the Lebanese Football Federation and continues to keep in touch with you to agree on appropriate solutions." Meanwhile, the Indian team will assemble in Kolkata on October 5 and have a training session on October 6. Head coach Manolo Marquez and his squad will travel to Vietnam on October 7.

Marquez had announced a list of 26 probables on Monday. The final squad of 23 players will be announced prior to the team's travel.