After a goalless draw between Lebanon and Mongolia in the Intercontinental Cup, the DJ returned to playing loud music, and Indian football fans made their way into the Kalinga Stadium for the next game between India and Vanuatu.
In the tunnel, amid silence, stood Lebanese midfielder Hassan Srour. He took a tissue, folded it twice, and kept it where he would touch his head on the ground. “Bismillah Hir Rahman Nir Rahim,” he said, and then got busy praying silently.
Lebanon had not won the match. But they had not lost either. The draw kept them alive in the race for the Intercontinental Cup final, and Srour couldn’t be happier.
This result was, in fact, far less heartbreaking than the last 1-1 draw against Iraq, which minimised its chances of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 2022. And that was a moment of joy.
“It was a good game; we created many chances. We were unlucky not to score, but we’ll take it in good stride,” Lebanon’s captain Hassan Maatouk told Sportstar.
Making a Living: A woman sells balloons as children sell roses in Beirut on August 13, 2021. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Lebanon has been rummaging for joy for at least four years now, not just as a football team but as a country. And thousands of miles away, the Cedars, the nickname of Lebanon’s national football team, are looking to provide a source of happiness in tough times through football. “We try to make something for the people to be happy. We try our best. We have many new players in the national team, and we are trying to build on the young ones that we have here,” Maatouk said.
Lebanon’s economic crisis has been ranked as one of the worst financial catastrophes since the 19th century by the World Bank. In August 2020, Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, suffered one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions ever when 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate exploded in a building.
“Everything in the country went backwards. It set us back 10 years. The blast still affects people now. Everyone lost someone. May Allah bless the people who lost their lives, those whose homes were destroyed, and those who lost their jobs,” Maatouk was quoted telling FIFA.
Source of Happiness: Lebanese football team celebrates their thumping victory over Vanuatu in the Intercontinental Cup on Friday. | Photo Credit: AIFF MEDIA
The disaster killed 218 people, injured 7,000, and left over 300,000 people homeless, debilitating the economy further. Compounding their woes is the fact that the Lebanese currency, the Lira, has lost over 95 per cent of its value, and around 80 per cent of the country is now poor, according to the United Nations.
“I have this dress for a three-year-old girl; I want to exchange it with essentials, milk, and laundry detergent,” was one of the hundreds of messages on social media, cries of help as families nosedived into limited means.
But Maatouk feels success will come one day, both for his country and the football team he has been leading for seven years now.
“A lot of families had problems, and many still have them. But like football, it is in our Lebanese culture to be together—to take this time the best way and try to finish a problem,” Maatouk said.
“I know it’s difficult, but this is life. Sometimes you need to continue despite difficulties, and the solution will come.”
A sight of the destruction: People walk past a child’s doll that was blown out of a nearby building after a massive explosion, which occurred a day before in the capital Beirut, on August 5, 2020. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Maatouk himself grew up amid a national crisis. Born to Lebanese parents, he had to flee with his family to survive the Lebanese Civil War, a conflict that claimed 1,20,000 lives.
Nine years later, he returned and has grown up to be one of the legends of the game in Lebanon, becoming the country’s joint-highest goalscorer and leading his country to the final round of FIFA World Cup qualifying for only the second time, after 2011.
With him around, the team radiates happiness. He walked out of the dressing room with an apple in one hand and a water bottle in the other, along with a towel tucked in between his arm and hand.
“We have a lot of problems back in the country, but when we are playing with the ball on our feet, we think about nothing but the game at that moment,” Maatouk said.
Coming into the Intercontinental Cup as the highest-ranked team (World No. 99), it will face host India in its next match on June 15, with a chance to play it again three days later. It will then travel to Bengaluru for the SAFF Championship.
“We have the third game against India, and we’ll go into that game to win,” Maatouk said. “We know they are a great team, and the match will be crucial for us for our route to the final and our ranking. So, we’ll try our best to get the better of India in our next match.”
Source of Joy: Hassan Maatouk of Lebanon, the country’s leading goalscorer, battles for control of the ball against Ali Mabkhout of the UAE during a FIFA World Cup 2022 Qualifier match at Zabeel Stadium, Dubai, on September 2, 2021. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
The Cedars are gearing up for the AFC Asian Cup next year, a tournament for which they have qualified for the first time in consecutive editions. In its six appearances across two Asian Cups (2000 and 2019), it has won only once, a 4-1 win over North Korea.
That is something it will look to change in Qatar next year.
“We are working very hard with the new coach to play the way he wants us to, and I think all of these preparations are for the Asian Cup,” Maatouk said as he shook hands and left for the team bus.
Nearly 30 years ago, football became a uniting force in Rwanda after a genocide that killed over a million people.
Lebanon, another nation on the brink of economic peril, will hope Maatouk and his compatriots can set another example by delivering some silverware in the upcoming competitions.
The desolate streets of Beirut, once packed with people, might just get a reason to congregate for a happy reason, exchange smiles, and maybe temporarily forget their hard times.
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