KUALA LUMPUR, Lebanon can thank midfielder Jihad Ayoub's 13th-minute strike - and their beginner's luck - for defeating defending champions Tajikistan 1-0 to qualify for the final of the 2024 Merdeka Tournament at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil here today. Tajikistan started aggressively and had a great chance to go ahead in the seventh minute but were thwarted by Lebanon defender Khalil Khamis. That woke up Lebanon and they hit back to go 1-0 up in the 13th minute when Jihad Ayoub headed home a corner taken by Rabih Ataya. Lebanon came close to doubling their lead in the 36th minute but captain Kassem El Zein's header was slightly off target. Neither team could find the back of the net after the break to leave Lebanon, under the guidance of Rachid Nassar, advancing to the final, where they will face either Malaysia or the Philippines, who will slug it out in the other semi-final later tonight. Meanwhile, Lebanon coach Rachid Nassar was pleased with the victory, describing it as sweet revenge for t heir loss to Tajikistan in the Asian Cup in Qatar in January. 'I'm satisfied with the victory and how my team played. We came to try out new players and reach the final, so we've already achieved our target,' he said. Tajikistan head coach Gela Shekiladze described today's semi-final as a tough game and said his players struggled to adapt to the high humidity here. 'It's different from last year. We brought along 10 new players and they are all young. 'But I don't want to use that as an excuse... we must learn from this loss for our next match,' he said. Source: BERNAMA News Agency