Match in action between India and Syria in the Intercontinental Cup. (Photo courtesy: AIFF)
Ahmedabad, July 16 (IANS): India were held to a 1-1 draw by Syria in their final Intercontinental Cup match in Ahmedabad. Narinder Gahlot (18) scored in the 51st minute while Syrua struck back with skipper Firas Al-Khatib converting a penalty in the 78th minute.
Having lost both their previous matches to Tajikistan and North Korea, India were already out of contention for a spot in the final while Syria needed a win to get there.
India played much of the game with more cohesion than they showed in the previous two matches, both of which exposed defensive frailties for new coach Igor Stimac to solve. The two sides traded blows for what turned out to be a goalless first half.
In the 51st minute, Anirudh Thapa sent in a corner kick from the right. Gahlot rose above the rest and headed the ball in and scored his first goal in his second international outing.
India looked to be on top after that. While chances were few and far in between, India dominated possession in midfield and kept the pressure on the Syrians. However, this changed after a rather rash tackle by Jerry Lalrinzuala, who had replaced Mandaro Rao Desai only a few minutes earlier, forced the referee to give Syria a penalty. Firas stepped up and made no mistake with the spot kick.
India lived dangerously after that and saw off waves of Syrian attack to win a point at the end of the game.
Narender Gehlot becomes 2nd youngest goalscorer for India
Eighteen-year-old Narender Gehlot has become the second youngest international goalscorer in Indian football.
At just 18 years and 83 days, Narender achieved the feat during India's last league game against Syria in the Intercontinental Cup.
In the 51st minute of the match, Ghelot, who made his debut in India's clash against Tajikistan, found the back of the Syria net with a thunderous header connecting off Anirudh Thapa's corner, to give Blue Tigers the lead.
However, his header was cancelled out by Firas Al-Khatib's 78th-minute penalty kick as both teams shared the spoils of the battle, in a match largely involving end-to-end action where both teams had a number of chances.
Narender beat Bhaichung Bhutia by less than a month to climb up the podium. In 1995 Nehru Cup, Bhaichung scored his first against Uzbekistan at the age of 18 years and 103 days.
Jerry Zirsanga from Mizoram holds the record for being the youngest Indian goal-scorer. Jerry was 16 years and 311 days old when he scored in a friendly against Kuwait during Stephen Constantine's first stint as India boss in 2004.
