In the last league game of the three-nation competition here on Monday, the Indian football team's chances of capturing the Intercontinental Cup title for a third time were shattered as it fell 0-3 to Syria.

At the GMC Balayogi Athletics Stadium, goals from Mahmoud Al Aswad and Daleho Mohsen Irandust in the seventh and 77th minutes broke the hearts of the home audience. Pablo Sabbag's goal during injury time, however, just served to highlight Syria's superiority.

Due to the outcome, Manolo Marquez's tenure as India's head coach, which he took over from Igor Stimac, got off to a poor start. In July, he was named director of affairs.

As a matter of fact, this was Syria's first victory on Indian territory. The West Asian nation has a lengthy history of competing in Indian events, but until Monday, they had not won a championship.

Before placing fourth in 2012, Syria lost the Nehru Cup finals to India in 2007 and 2009. Syria finished in third place during their most recent Intercontinental Cup journey to India. The two teams finished the tournament with a 1-1 draw.