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Tuesday, 3 October 2023
Friday, 3 February 2023
Traditional powerhouses set to clash in 76th Santosh Trophy final round 2023
In all 12 teams, including defending champion
Kerala, qualified for the final round of the Santosh Trophy, all set for a
clash to etch their own names on a trophy synonymous with the best of Indian
Football.
Kerala,
Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Odisha, Punjab, Bengal, Meghalaya, Delhi and
Manipur qualified from the group stages. They will be joined by Railways and
Services in the final round of the tournament to kick off in Bhubaneswar on
February 10. The semifinals, third place play and the final will be played in
Saudi Arabia.
Kerala,
Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Odisha, and Punjab are placed in Group A while
Group B include Bengal, Meghalaya, Delhi, Services, Railways, and Manipur.
The group
stage of the tournament was played across six different venues -- Assam, Delhi,
Maharashtra, Manipur, Odisha and Kerala -- and contested by 36 different teams.
Defending
champions Kerala go into the final round as, arguably, the favourites. The
numbers bear testament to this. Not only have they won two of the last three
editions -- and seven titles overall -- but they have also been supremely
dominant in the group stages too, scoring the most goals (24) in five games at
a mind-boggling rate of 4.8 goals per game. Playing at home, they conceded a
mere two goals in the group stages to qualify for the final round.
Their
biggest challenge will come from Bengal, who hold the record for the most
titles in the tournament's history (32). Bengal's last win came in the 2016-17
edition, but the team has made three of the last four finals, losing both times
to Kerala -- once at home in Kolkata and the second in Malappuram. Slotted in
Group B, they will not meet their nemesis till the knockout stages, if all goes
to plan.
Besides the
two long-term favourites and nemesis, Punjab, Maharashtra and Karnataka will
hope to ride on the dark horses tag to make the cut for the knockouts. Delhi,
who have qualified for the final rounds after missing out on the last two
occasions have not won the tournament since 1942. They go in as underdogs but
if their performance in the group stages is any indicator, no one will take
them lightly.
A traditionally
strong Services team will hope to arrive at the final rounds and do what they
do -- silently to make it to the final round, efficiently and without much
fuss. Services have won five of the last ten editions of the tournament and
will be keen to erase the memory of a disappointing performance last time out.
Bengal
striker Narohari Shrestha, Maharashtra's Arif Sheikh and Kerala's Nijo Gilbert
lead the goalscoring charts with six goals each. While none might come close to
breaking Inder Singh's impossible feat of 23 goals, they will hope to etch
their names alongside him as the winner of the golden boot for the tournament.
The
tournament returned to Odisha for the first time in over a decade. The state
has never won the tournament or even made the semifinals in its history.
The results of the draw are as follows:
GROUP A:
Kerala, Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Odisha, Group VI Winner
FIXTURES
February
10: Goa vs Kerala 02:00 PM
Maharashtra
vs Odisha 02:00 PM
Punjab
vs Karnataka
February
12: Kerala vs Karnataka 02:00 PM
Punjab
vs Maharashtra 02:00 PM
Goa
vs Odisha 07:00 PM
February
14: Karnataka vs Goa 02:00 PM
Odisha vs
Punjab 02:00 PM
Kerala
vs Maharashtra 07:00 PM
February
17: Maharashtra vs Karnataka 02:00 PM
Odisha
vs Kerala 02:00 PM
Punjab
vs Goa 07:00 PM
February
19: Karnataka vs Odisha 02:00 PM
Goa
vs Maharashtra 02:00 PM
Kerala
vs Punjab 07:00 PM
GROUP B:
Bengal, Meghalaya, Delhi, Services, Railways, Group II/VI Runners-up
FIXTURES
February
11: Delhi vs Bengal 02:00 PM
Manipur
vs Railways 02:00 PM
Meghalaya
vs Services 07:00 PM
February
13: Bengal vs Services 02:00 PM
Meghalaya
vs Manipur 02:00 PM
Delhi
vs Railways 07:00 PM
February
15: Services vs Delhi 02:00 PM
Railways vs
Meghalaya 02:00 PM
Bengal
vs Manipur 07:00 PM
February
18: Manipur vs Services 02:00 PM
Railways vs Bengal 02:00 PM
Meghalaya vs Delhi 07:00 PM
February
20: Services vs Railways 02:00 PM
Delhi
vs Manipur 02:00 PM
Bengal
vs Meghalaya 07:00 PM
Sunday, 25 December 2022
Saturday, 26 November 2022
Thursday, 13 October 2022
Wednesday, 5 October 2022
Monday, 26 September 2022
Friday, 12 April 2019
Saturday, 21 April 2018
SAFF Championship 2018 draw concluded, India in Group B with Sri Lanka and Maldives.
SAFF Suzuki Cup 2018 official draw was concluded on Wednesday at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka as seven South Asian teams from SAFF conference learned their opponent and pool groupings.
The tournament will kick off on September 4th and group stages will continue till 9th and the two semi-finals will be held on September 12th with the final on 15th September 2018.
SAFF President Kazi Md Salahuddin speaking to media delegates said: “We raised the curtain on what will be the 12th edition of our region’s biggest and most important international tournament."
Bengaluru FC comes from a goal down to beat East Bengal 4-1 in the Super Cup Final.
Bengaluru FC inspirational skipper and captain Sunil Chhetri described the inaugural Hero Super Cup final as "one of the best game of my life" after scoring two goals to help his team beat East Bengal 4-1 at the Kalinga Stadium.
Ansumanah Koramah pulled off a stunning overhead volley in the 28th minute to give East Bengal an unlikely lead in the game after Gurpreet Singh failed to deal with a corner.
Bengaluru was the dominant side as the attacking trio of Miku, Chhetri and Udanta kept pegging East Bengal in their own half with free-flowing attacking football.
Erik Paartalu and Victor Perez orchestrated the midfield constructing attacks down the wing using Udanta and Chhetri as well as constructing attack down the middle to put tremendous pressure on East Bengal defence.The pressure finally paid off when Rahul Bheke lost his marker Kromah to head in from the corner in the 39th minute to give Bengaluru FC the much-needed equalizer.
But East Bengal was dealt a serious blow just before the halftime mark when Samad Ali Mullick was red carded for an unnecessary high elbow into Subhasish Bose's face and the referee gave him the marching orders.
Back in the second half, 10-man East Bengal tried to contain Bengaluru FC but with the introduction of Toni Dovale in place of Erik Paartalu, Alberto Roca went for an all-out kill as East Bengal started to look vulnerable defensively.
On the 68th minute, Bengaluru found the stroke of luck as they were awarded a penalty after Gurwinder handled the ball inside the box in an attempt to clear a corner.Sunil Chhetri stepped-up to spot to send the keeper the wrong way as Bengaluru FC lead 2-1 in the night.
With a nose ahead in the game and 10-man East Bengal looking for an equalizer left gaping holes in the East Bengal defence as Bengaluru started to tighten the noose with Toni Dovale and Victor Perez synchronised attacks in the final third to create a flurry of chances.
In the 71st minute, Victor Perez neatly threaded a pass to Miku who sidestepped his marker Eduardo to unleash a powerful shot beating Ubaid as Bengaluru started to show their elixir of class with another theatrical display of dominant football.
With 3-1 up for the night, the catastrophe for East Bengal was finally completed when Sunil Chhetri scored his second of the night in the 90th minute with a perfect header from Udanta's cross as 4-1 scoreline lay testimony to the victory that was never destined to be comfortable, it was, in the end, convincing as Bengaluru FC lifted the Hero Super Cup 2018 trophy.
Bengaluru comes from a goal down to slay Mohun Bagan 4-2 to enter Hero Super Cup Final.
By Rajarshi Chakrabarty
Bengaluru FC showed mettle and class
as they came from a goal down and reduced to 10-men to beat Mohun Bagan 4-2 in
the Hero Super Cup semi-final.
Both teams came out attacking in the
opening stages as Nikhil Kadam found himself in space inside the box in the 7th
minute but could not set himself up for the shot and skied the ball away from
the target. Boithang had an opportunity on the other end moments later as the
match swayed end to end but ended up missing the target narrowly.
As the match progressed the Bengaluru
FC trio of Udanta, Miku and Chhetri started to combine well in the attacking
third as Mohun Bagan were forced to defend deep into their box.
Udanta had a glorious opportunity to
open the scoring when he beautifully turned around his marker inside the box
but could not find the target in the 18th minute as Mohun Bagan were on the
ropes.
But it was Mohun Bagan who opened the
scoring in the 42nd minute as Dipanda Dicka netted in from close range from
Akram Moghrabi's assist to give Bagan a 1-0 lead going into the halftime
interval.
Back in the second half, Bengaluru FC
suffered a major setback being down to 10-man as Nishu Kumar was red carded for
a reckless tackle on Nikhil Kadam in an empty space and was given the marching
order for being the last defender.
10-man Bengaluru was not cowed down
by the setback as they took the attack to Mohun Bagan as Miku showed his class
from the 62nd minute onward as he secured the equalizer with a powerful strike
inside the box to beat Shilton to make it 1-1.
The second goal came in the 65th
minute as Mohun Bagan were caught napping from a quickly taken free kick by Bengaluru
FC as Miku slammed in past Shilton Paul to script a remarkable turnaround for
Bengaluru FC to make it 2-1.
Miku completed his hattrick in the
89th minute with a perfect penalty to make it 3-1 as Bengaluru FC clearly
looked the dominant side in front of a hapless looking Mohun Bagan.
The magic moment of the game came in
the 90th minute as Sunil Chhetri produced a stellar goal cutting back inside
the box to lose his marker and buried his right-footed curler from 18 yards out
past a diving Shilton Paul to put the game to bed with a 4-1margin.
Dicka managed to pull back another
goal, his second of the night to make it 4-2 but it was too late as Bengaluru
FC walloped to a fantastic 4-2 to make it to the final where they face a
resurging Eat Bengal side.
Dudu’s 78th minute goal hands East Bengal a place in Hero Super Cup Final, beats FC Goa 1-0.
By Rajarshi Chakrabarty
Dudu Omagbemi turned the savior for East Bengal as the striker's 78th-minute strike gave East Bengal their ticket to the final of the Hero Super Cup 2018 beating FC Goa 1-0.
FC Goa was seriously incapacitated due to the suspension of 4 key players as Hugo Boumous, Brandon Fernandes, Sergio Juste and Bruno Pinheiro missed out due to suspensions.
East Bengal came all-out attacking and it was Mahmoud Al-Amna who missed the easiest chance of the half, failing to tap-in from six-yard box with the goalkeeper at his mercy.
Ferran Corominas did well wonderfully to make his way through brilliant individual skills into the East Bengal box, right into the stroke of half-time but could not keep his shot on target in his second attempt.
Back in the second half, both teams looked to create chances and opportunities went begging due to lack of quality in the final ball. Ferran Corominas was at the heart of the action as he dangerously lurked around East Bengal box and made some good penetrative run to stretch the backline. Corominas came close to scoring in the 73rd minute when his thunderous freekick from just outside the box rattled the crossbar.
In a match of measured attacking approach and stubborn defending it was East Bengal who opened the scoring in the 78th minute through Dudu Omagbemi when the Nigerian poked his feet into Katsumi's cross to give East Bengal 1-0 lead. Dudu Omagmeni showed his importance in the team as the lone positive striker with his poaching instinct in a crucial game to open the scoring.
Any chance for an FC Goa comeback met with a serious blow when influential midfielder Edu Bedia needlessly clattered down Kromah on the 82nd minute and was given the marching orders by the referee.
FC Goa had two golden chances right at the trailing end of the game when Ferran Corominas lurking in the box tried to meet a beautiful cross but Eduardo's intervention and clearance averted the danger but almost went back into his own net.
The second one saw Manvir Singh found himself in open space in the 92 minute after some indecisive defending from Gurwinder but the striker failed to keep his shot on the target as FC Goa’s chance for an equalizer seemed improbable.
As time ticked by East Bengal did just enough to see off the match and cruise into the final with a narrow 1-0 lead where a dominant Bengaluru FC awaits them in an enticing encounter between two familiar foes now coming off different leagues.
Saturday, 14 April 2018
Sunil Chhetri hattrick sends Bengaluru FC to semi-final, beats NEROCA FC 3-1
By Rajarshi Chakrabarty
At 33, Sunil Chhetri is not quickest around as the wrong side of 30 starts to take away a yard or two of pace, the magic starts to fade away and younger quicker opponents beat you for a chase or close you down in a flash.
But the name is Sunil Chhetri, India and Bengaluru FC's talismanic skipper is showing no signs of slowing down as the striker hammered another hattrick in a big game against a tough and resolute NEROCA FC side in the Hero Super Cup quarter-final.
Chhetri showed his skills of being an elite poacher lurking at the right areas around the box, with his twinkling feet and pouring out his magic as he completed his hat-trick deep into the extra time with a swaggering show of force to take Bengaluru FC into the semi-final.
The first goal came in the 13th minute as Chhetri released Udata into open space down the right flank.Udanta delivered a whipping cross into the six-yard box as NEROCA FC keeper Lalit Thapa could only push it away but Chhetri was positioned perfectly between two defenders to bury the header into the back of the net.
NEROCA FC managed to restore parity and scored the important goal just at the stroke of halftime.Aryn Williams long ball from the freekick was not collected cleanly by Gurpreet and fell to Pritam Singh whose first shot bounced off the keeper but placed the ball into the goal in his second attempt to make it 1-1 in the stoppage time of first half.
Back in the second half, NEROCA threatened intermittently as Felix Odilli Chidi broke away into space during a couple of occasions but could not find the target.
It was Sunil Chhetri in the 55th minute showed his brilliant poaching skills as he timed his run perfectly to beat the offside trap to find himself in a one-on-one with the goalkeeper and headed it down nicely to put it past Lait Thapa, as Bengaluru FC went 2-1 up.
NEROCA almost found their moment in the 79th minute, when Ashok Singh's cross found Chidi in the box but the striker failed to keep his header into the frame.
But the game belonged to Sunil Chhetri as showed his class and lethality as the 33-year-old still had the astute and hunger to make run into the box overcoming the tiredness and fatigue of playing in hot, humid conditions.
It was 94th minute on the clock and Chhetri still managed to get the run into the box as Toni Dovale laid it off for Chhetri into the box who shielded himself from the vision of the keeper behind his marker Gorimangi Singh to bury the ball at the back of the net.
3-1 to Bengaluru and Sunil Chhetri as the Bengaluru FC finds themselves at the business end of yet another tournament as they renew their rivalry with old foes Mohun Bagan in a mouth-watering semi-final encounter on 17th April 2018 at the Kalinga Stadium.
6 Red cards and 6 Goals, as FC Goa beat Jamshedpur FC 6-1 in a dramatic encounter.
By Rajarshi Chakrabarty
A bizarre quarter-final game saw 3 players from each team being red carded at halftime as FC Goa beat Jamshedpur FC 5-1 to make it the Super Cup semi-final.
Goals from Brandon Fernandes (34’), Ferran Corominas (P – 69’), Manvir Singh (77’), Hugo Boumous (78’; 89’) saw FC Goa thrash Jamshedpur FC as Ashim Biswas managed to pull one back for Jamshedpur FC deep into the injury time (90+2').
Goa led 1-0 at the halftime with a 34-minute strike from Brandon Fernandes going into the break.But a clash between the players of both sides at half time saw 3 players from each team were shown red card. Subrata Paul, Belfort and Anas Edathodika were sent off from Jamshedpur’s end, Fernandes, Sergio Juste and Bruno Pinheiro were red carded for FC Goa.
The six red cards changed the tactical shape of both teams as more space on the pitch was well exploited by FC Goa passing and possession football as they adapted well to the downsized formation.
Corominas has been the top marksman for FC Goa and the Spaniard scored on 69th minute from a penalty after being brought down into the box by Memo.
With a 2-0 lead, FC Goa started to play with flair and freedom as Jamshedpur FC's eulogy was being scripted by then as Manvir Singh added a third in the 77th minute.
With the match rolling into the final 10 minutes, Hugo Boumous strike twice within few minutes(78’; 89’) with the first coming off a brilliant forward run and unleashing a powerful left-footer to score his first.His second came in the 89th minute as the Moroccan neatly tucked a low cross from Edu Bedia to complete pegging the final nail in Jamshedpur FC' s coffin.
Ashim Biswas managed to grab a consolation goal right at the end(90+2') with a composed finish as the match ended without any further drama with Jamshedpur FC's 5-1 annihilation.
FC Goa will now take on Kolkata giants East Bengal in the semi-final with a depleted side as three key players would miss out due to suspension in the crunch game.
Thursday, 12 April 2018
Seedings confirmed for AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019™ draw
The seeding for the eagerly-anticipated draw for the most prestigious competition on the Continent, the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019™, which will take place on May 4, 2018, 7:30pm (UAE time), in Dubai has now been confirmed following today’s release of the latest FIFA World Ranking.
In line with previous editions of the AFC Asian Cup, the hosts United Arab Emirates have been allocated the first position in pot one in the draw to be held at the Armani Hotel in the UAE’s iconic Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building. This will ensure they will play the opening match on January 5, 2019, at the Zayed Sports City Stadium.
The 12 teams, who received an automatic bye into the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019™ after qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup RussiaTM - Asian Qualifiers Final Round, have already secured their places in pots one and two and have been allocated spots following today’s publication of the latest FIFA ranking.
Meanwhile, the 12 teams who qualified from the recently concluded AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019™ Qualifiers Final Round have been seeded in pots three and four and positioned accordingly based on the same rankings.
This means the hosts UAE along with Islamic Republic of Iran, defending champions Australia, and the tournament’s most successful nation, Japan as well as Korea Republic and Saudi Arabia will take pole position in pot one, while China PR, Syria, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Qatar and Thailand have been seeded in pot two.
Debutants Kyrgyz Republic, who were the biggest movers in world football in the FIFA Ranking - up an astonishing 40 places - take their place in pot three alongside Lebanon, Palestine, Oman, India and Vietnam. Meanwhile DPR Korea, Philippines, Bahrain, Jordan, Yemen and Turkmenistan make up the final six teams in the final pot.
The expansion from 16 to 24 teams will see countries representing all five AFC zones divided into six groups of four teams each, with the top two and four best third-placed teams advancing into the final 16 of the competition, which lives up to its slogan of “Bringing Asia Together.”
Wednesday, 11 April 2018
AFC CUP: Abahani Limited Dhaka beats Aizawl FC 3-0 in Group E encounter.
By Rajarshi Chakrabarty Image Source:The-AFC
Three first-half goals saw Aizawl FC being decimated by a 3-0 loss in the group E clash of the AFC Cup matchday three on Wednesday against Abahani Limited Dhaka,
Aizawl FC's accident-prone defense was tested early on, as Rubel Miya tried his luck inside the box after some intelligent work by Emeka Onuha in a quick attack on the break. The shot took a deflection of Lalrosanga's feet to land at the back of the net as Abahani took 1-0 lead in just 2nd minute into the game.
Ndaku Alison soon added a second in the 28th minute, as Aizawl FC failed to deal with a corner as Sunday Chizoba's header was cleared off the line but Alison was positioned perfectly to slot it into the goal to make it 2-0 for the visitors.
Aizawl FC's effort to regroup was dealt another blow in the 37th minute when left back Nasiruddin's cross was headed down by Chizoba onto the path of Seiya Kojima inside the box.The Japanes chested it down and hammered it past Lalwnpuia to set Abahani 3-0 ahead in the game.
Aizawl FC managed to consolidate their leaky defense in the second half with introduction of Andrei Ionescu added more control in the midfield pairing with Masih Saighani.
Both teams, failed to add any further goals to their tally as Abahani managed to bag all three points with a comfortable 3-0 win as both sides meet again on 25th April at Bangabandhu Stadium in Dhaka in Aizawl's away game.
AFC CUP: Bengaluru FC stays on top of Group E with a 1-0 win over New Radiant SC
By Rajarshi Chakrabarty Image Credit: The-AFC
Bengaluru FC managed to steal a scrappy 1-0 win over New Radiant SC(Maldives) in their Group E encounter at Sree Kanteerava Stadium with a late goal from Nishu Kumar(90+1’)
The visiting sides dominated the game in terms of possession as Bengaluru FC rested a few of their first-team regulars due to their crucial Super Cup quarter-final game against NEROCA FC in few days’ time.
Sunil Chhetri was kept out of the playing XI as Thongkosiem Haokip paired with Daniel Segovia upfront in Albert Roca's 3-5-2 formation.
Haokip had a chance early in the 15-minute mark as goalkeeper Imran Mohammed came off his line to clear a long ball but his failed clearance fell to Haokip. Haokip took a shot on the goal but Haroon Amiri’s goal line headed clearance saved the goalkeepers blushes.
Haokip was again involved as he intercepted a defensive square pass and played it to Daniel Segovia in a quick turn of attack, but the striker could not take his shot early and was swarmed by Radiant SC defenders to avert any further danger.
Bengaluru FC Coach Albert Roca made three tactical changes in the second half bringing in Subhash Bose, Victor Perez, and Sunil Chhetri.
The move finally played off in the first minute of extra time, as New Radiant SC playing a high line were caught on the break as Sunil Chhetri managed to break away with a solo run into the Radiant SC half and laid it off for Nishu Kumar advancing from the left back, who had a simple tap-in to make it 1-0.
With this win, Bengaluru FC sits on top of Group E with nine points as they face the same opponent at an away game on 25th April at the National Stadium, Male.
Hero Super Cup: Mohun Bagan tailors Shillong Lajong 3-1, seals Semi-Final spot
By Rajarshi Chakrabarty
Hero Super Cup witnessed the exit of the second north-eastern club in less than a week after Shillong Lajong were inflicted a 3-1 defeat in the quarter-final by a clinical Mohun Bagan on Wednesday at the Kalinga Stadium.
A goal each from Sheikh Faiaz, Nikhil Kadam and an own goal from Samuel Doe completed Lajong's misery as they managed one consolation goal from Abdoulaye Koffi.
Mohun Bagan opened the scoring early on the12th minute when Dicka chipped the ball into the box to Sheikh Faiaz who was swarmed by Lajong defenders but still managed to skillfully turn the ball into the back of the net despite being floored on the pitch as Lajong defenders failed to deal with the ball.
Mohun Bagan doubled their lead in the 22nd minute when Samuel Doe's headed clearance landed at the feet of Nikhil Kadam who unleashed a venomous left-footed curler that landed inside the goal kissing inside of the bar.Referee Santosh Kumar awarded the goal to Mohun Bagan after consulting with the linesman as Mohun Bagan sat pretty on a comfortable 2-0 lead.
Shillong Lajong had their chance to make a comeback into the game when they were awarded a penalty in the 25th minute after Samuel was brought down inside the box was Kingshuk Debnath.
The Lajong skipper himself stepped up to take the spot kick but his shot was saved by Shilton Paul but Lajong hit back almost immediately after Abdoulaye Koffi headed-in from inside the box taking advantage of some indecisive defending from Mohun Bagan, to make it 2-1 on the 25th minute.
The game was put beyond contention in the 60th minute when right back Arijit Bagui delivered a long ball into the box as both Akram Moghrabi and Samuel Doe dived to reach to the ball. The ball, unfortunately, took the touch of Doe's intended headed clearance to land at the back of the net.
With a comfortable 3-1 win the Mariners sailed into the Semi-Final and are due to meet the winner between Bengaluru FC and NEROCA FC.
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