Bishkek - Maldives ended a difficult international window on a disappointing note on Thursday, suffering a heavy 6–0 defeat to Lebanon at the Dolen Omurzakov Stadium in Bishkek.
The defeat was the Maldives’ third consecutive loss during the international window, following a 3–0 defeat to China and a 5–0 loss to Kyrgyzstan on September 28. The latest result against Lebanon brought the window to a difficult conclusion, with the Maldives conceding 14 goals across the three matches without scoring.
The task against Lebanon became significantly harder as early as the 11th minute when Samooh Ali (Samutte) was sent off, leaving the Maldives with ten players for the majority of the match.
Lebanon took advantage of the numerical advantage after opening the scoring just three minutes into the match through Husseyn Chakroun. The forward added a second goal in the 36th minute before completing his hat-trick in the 42nd minute, giving Lebanon a 3–0 lead at half-time.
The second half continued in the same direction. Ahmed Maish Rasheed was credited with an own goal in the 52nd minute, increasing Lebanon’s advantage to 4–0. Ali Kassas then scored in the 83rd minute before completing his brace in the second minute of stoppage time to make it 6–0.
Lebanon’s dominance was also reflected in the statistics. The Lebanese side registered 14 shots, including 10 on target, while the Maldives managed only two shots, with one on target. Lebanon controlled 75 percent of possession and recorded three corners.
The result further adds to a challenging period for Maldives head coach and FAM Technical Director István Urbányi, who returned to the country earlier this year after a 12-year absence.
Urbányi has now overseen 10 matches involving the senior national team and the Maldives U20 side, recording one win, three draws and six defeats.
At senior level, the Maldives’ only victory under Urbányi came in a 2–1 AFC qualifying win over Timor-Leste. The team then lost 0–1 to Afghanistan in the Diamond Jubilee, followed by a 0–3 defeat to Pakistan, which marked Pakistan’s first victory over the Maldives since 1992.
The Maldives drew 1–1 with Bangladesh U23 before losing 0–3 to China in a friendly. They then suffered a 0–5 defeat to Kyrgyzstan on September 28, a result that marked Kyrgyzstan’s first victory over the Maldives since 1997.
The 6–0 loss to Lebanon was therefore the Maldives’ seventh senior match under Urbányi, leaving his senior record at one win, one draw and five defeats.
At U20 level, the Maldives drew 1–1 with Bangladesh U23, lost 2–3 to Sri Lanka and drew 0–0 with Bhutan during the SAFF campaign in Malé. The U20 side’s record across those three matches stands at two draws and one defeat.
Lebanon defeat also extended the Lebanese side’s perfect head-to-head record against the Maldives.
Before Thursday, the two nations had met five times, with Lebanon winning every encounter. Lebanon defeated the Maldives 3–0 in the 2004 FIFA World Cup qualifiers and then won 5–2 in the return fixture later that year. Lebanon recorded another 4–0 victory in a 2008 friendly before winning 2–1 in the return friendly. Their most recent meeting before Thursday came at the 2023 SAFF Championship, where Lebanon won 1–0.
With the latest 6–0 victory, Lebanon have now won all six meetings between the two sides, scoring 21 goals and conceding only three.
For Lebanon, the emphatic result also marked Madjid Bougherra’s first win as head coach. For the Maldives, however, the defeat closes a demanding international window that exposed the challenges still facing the national team.
The three-match sequence against China, Kyrgyzstan and Lebanon provided valuable exposure against strong opposition but also highlighted areas requiring improvement, particularly in defensive organisation, possession retention and the ability to create and convert chances.
With the international window now concluded, the Maldives return from Bishkek with a difficult set of results to assess and important lessons to take forward as Urbányi and his staff continue the process of rebuilding the national team.
