Page 5 - Indian Football

Indians should compete against different footballing cultures: Luis Garcia

Spain and Liverpool legend Luis Garcia believes that Indian football can touch global heights if the players are given exposure to different leagues abroad and nourish young talents and coaches methodically. Garcia, who was part of the ISL title-winning Atletico de Kolkata side in 2014, said giving the Indian footballers a chance to appear in foreign leagues will expand their knowledge bandwidth. "It is very important because you compete against a different style of football (abroad). If you have to wait for the last stages of a tournament to compete against them, then it is only going to be 1 or 2 games, and they need to compete more often. "I think it's important that the Indian (national) team travel away during the year, and try to have friendly games in Asia and around. The scoreline doesn't matter as it is about having the feeling of facing a different kind of football," Garcia, who appeared in 77 matches for Liverpool between 2004 and 2007 Premier League seasons, told PTI her

Kalinga Super Cup to kick off on January 9, AFC CL prelim spot up for grabs

The Kalinga Super Cup, to be played at two venues in Odisha from January 9, will feature both the ISL and I-League teams with the winners being nominated to play in the AFC Champions League 2 Preliminary Stage. "The format of the tournament will consist of four groups of four teams each, who will play single-leg matches amongst themselves. The group winners will qualify for the semifinals followed by the final to be played on January 28," said All India Football Federation in a statement on Wednesday. The I-League teams will play the qualifiers to get into the group stage of the Kalinga Super Cup where four slots have been reserved for them in the group stage. "The Champions of Kalinga Super Cup will be nominated to play in the ACL 2 Preliminary Stage of AFC 2023-24 season," said the AIFF. AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey said, "As per the decision we took earlier, the annual Super Cup tournament will now be organised in a bigger and broader perspective. "The tournament will now be k

Mohun Bangan Super Giant's Asian dreams crashed by Odisha FC in AFC Cup

A dominant Odisha FC humiliated reigning ISL champions Mohun Bagan Super Giant 5-2 in their high-scoring penultimate Group D clash of the AFC Cup here on Monday, leaving the legacy club's legion of fans crestfallen in their own backyard. The seasoned Hugo Boumous propelled Mohun Bagan into lead with his 17th-minute strike at the Salt Lake Stadium. Roy Krishna found the equaliser in the 29th minute and Diego Mauricio silenced the home crowd by putting Odisha FC ahead with his 32nd-minute goal. The visiting OFC scored two goals in a span of three minutes. More misery awaited Mohun Bagan as Cy Goddard made it 3-1 in favour of OFC by finding the back of the net in the 41st minute, leaving the fans wearing the green-and-maroon jersey at the Salt Lake Stadium shocked. The hosts sought a way back into the game after the interval and came close as the hour approached, Liston Colaco's free-kick from 30 yards hitting the top of the OFC crossbar on the way over. But it was game on in the 63r

World Cup 2026 Qualifier India vs Qatar highlights: India lose 0-3 to Qatar

India vs Qatar football match highlights: Qatar would have won by a bigger margin had they not missed several chances while dominating throughout the 90 minutes at the Kalinga Stadium.

IND vs QAT football: Nothing to lose but a hell of a lot to gain - Stimac

Head coach Igor Stimac on Monday said that India have nothing to lose but a hell of a lot to gain in their 2026 FIFA World Cup round 2 qualifiers match against Asian champions Qatar here on Tuesday. India's 1-0 away win against Kuwait on November 16 will certainly boost their confidence but Stimac made it clear that "Qatar is out of our league", though the home side will seek to take inspiration from their famous goal-less draw against the Asian champions four years ago. "The Kuwait game was the most important game in our qualifiers in this group. We had an away win against our direct opponent for the second spot," Stimac said at the pre-match press conference. "We are very realistic, we know that Qatar is out of our league. But we also know that this is football, the most beautiful game in the world which provides opportunities and this is our opportunity." Stimac urged his players to consider Tuesday's match at the Kalinga Stadium as any other game and give their best. "We all k

FIFA World Cup Qualifiers: Manvir helps India beat Kuwait 1-0 in away match

Manvir Singh struck a late goal as India beat Kuwait 1-0 in their 2026 FIFA World Cup second round qualifiers match here on Thursday. Manvir scored with a left-footed shot in the 75th minute as he connected a Lallianzuala Chhangte cross to help India win the match at the Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium here. Kuwait ended the match with 10 men as their player Faisal Alharbi was sent off after picking his second yellow card in the third minute of the added time for a high boot challenge on Chhangte. India play Asian champions Qatar next on November 21 in Bhubaneswar. India are placed in Group A alongside Qatar, Kuwait and Afghanistan with the top two from the group progressing to the third round of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. The top two teams from each group will also secure qualification for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. The Blue Tigers have never advanced to the third round of AFC's FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Ranked 106th in the world, India had beaten Kuwait (149th) on penal

We are at right stage: Chhetri ahead of India's FIFA WC qualifier match

The 39-year-old footballer also accepted that they are in a strong group in the World Cup qualifiers

AIFF sacks secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran due to breach of interest

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Wednesday announced that it has sacked secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran due to "breach of trust". Prabhakaran's sacking comes 14 months after his appointment to the high-profile job even as the national federation did not mention what the breach of trust was that prompted the action. "The All India Football Federation hereby announces that the services of Dr. Shaji Prabhakaran have been terminated due to breach of trust with immediate effect as of November 7, 2023," the AIFF statement read. "The AIFF Deputy Secretary, Mr M Satyanarayan, will take charge as Acting Secretary General of AIFF with immediate effect," the statement added. AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey served the termination letter on Tuesday to Prabhakaran, who was appointed on September 3 in 2022 and took charge on September 6. Prabhakaran has not yet reacted to the development but is expected to give his version soon. AIFF vice-president NA Haris told PTI that even the A

AIFF sacks its secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran due to trust deficit

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has sacked its secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran due to "trust deficit", a top official said on Wednesday. AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey served the termination letter on Tuesday to Prabhakaran, who got the high-profile job on September 3 in 2022. "The AIFF president has issued the termination letter to Prabhakaran. He is no longer the AIFF Secretary General," AIFF vice-president NA Haris told PTI. "Deputy secretary general Satyanarayan M will discharge his duties as acting secretary general," he added. Haris said there has been a "trust deficit" between Chaubey and Prabhakaran and even the AIFF executive committee members are not happy with the way the sacked secretary general worked. Prabhakaran was appointed at the first executive Committee meeting of the new dispensation which took charge after the elections on September 2. He was earlier serving as Football Delhi president. He resigned from that post and took charge as AIFF secretary

Indian women football team's Olympic dreams over after loss against Vietnam

Having lost their second consecutive match in a row, India is now out of contention for the Olympics despite having a match in hand

Asian Games: Boys fought valiantly, says Indian football coach Stimac

India's men's football team's Asian Games campaign ended following two quick second-half strikes by Marram Mohammed as the Blue Tigers went down 0-2 to Saudi Arabia

Asian Games Highlights, Day 5: Gold in Shooting, IND 5th in medals tally

Asian Games 2023 Highlights, Day 5: India won gold, silver and bronze in Shooting, Wushu and Equestrian respectively to finish with a total of 25 medals and lie in the 5th place in the medals tally

Asian Games 2023: Football coach Stimac lauds Sunil Chhetri and Jhingan

Indian football team head coach Igor Stimac has lauded senior players Sunil Chhetri and Sandesh Jhingan for "brilliantly" guiding the younger team-mates after the side qualified for the round of 16 in Asian Games despite a controversial build-up. A rag-tag team with just Chhetri and Jhingan as notable names was assembled in the eleventh hour after the Indian Super League clubs refused to release their players named in the original squad. The team reached Hangzhou just hours before the first group match was to be played. The team lost 1-5 to China after playing the match without a single training session. The strategy sessions were held in flight and on transit. A 1-0 win over Bangladesh and a 1-1 draw against Myanmar took the team to knockouts as group runners-up, and they will face mighty Saudi Arabia in their round of 16 match on Thursday. "We qualified for the knockouts round despite all the problems. I am very proud of the boys especially for Sunil and Sandesh. They led these .

Asian Games 2023 Day 1 Highlights: India bag 5 medals in rowing, shooting

Asian Games 2023 Day 1 Highlights: The Indian team won five medals in rowing and shooting while it secured a medal by qualifying for final in women's cricket

Asiad 2023: India football teams' full schedule, squads, match timings

Indian men's and women's football teams have been drawn in groups where chances of them moving ahead to the knockout stage at the Asian Games are bright

Asian Games 2023 full India schedule, timings, medal hopefuls, streaming

Check the Asian Games 2023 full schedule of India from September 24 to October 8 in Hangzhou 2022 Games. Women's

Asiad 2023: India beat Bangladesh, keep alive knockout hopes in football

Sunil Chhetri scored from the penalty spot to keep alive India's hopes of a knockout entry in the Asian Games football competition football

Asiad 2023: After China debacle, India face Bangladesh in must-win match

Battered by hosts China in their opening match after playing without any training session, India will be up against a tricky Bangladesh side in their must-win group match in the Asian Games football competition here on Thursday. A rag-tag Indian team reached here late Monday evening and played its first match without proper rest and sleep and was hammered 1-5 by China on Tuesday. Igor Stimac's team needs to beat Bangladesh in its second Group A game to remain in the fray for the knock-outs. A loss on Thursday may not straightway knock India out of reckoning as the best third-placed teams from the six groups can also advance to the Round of 16, but that will leave the team with a lot of uncertainties in the final game. Qualifying as one of the best four third-place teams could also set India up against tougher sides in the pre-quarterfinals. Bangladesh have never been an easy side for India in any level and they will also be desperate for a win after losing their opening match 0-1

Asiad 2023: No training and proper rest, India football team face China

Set to play their opening match without any training session and proper rest after the last-minute announcement of the squad, India will be the clear underdogs against formidable China in their Asian Games group game here on Tuesday. India were able to stitch a rag-tag final squad only on Friday and the team left for China on Sunday, leaving no time for the players to even have a training session together. Moreover, two players -- defenders Konsam Chinglensana Singh and Lalchungnunga -- out of the 22 players picked will join later as their visas were not ready. The Indian contingent's chef de mission Bhupinder Singh Bajwa has, however, said that the duo will get their 'express visas' in a day or two and they will join the team. In any case, the duo will not be available for the Group A match against China on Tuesday and that will be a blow for India. Also head coach Igor Stimac said on Sunday that senior defender Sandesh Jhingan and talismanic striker Sunil Chhetri will not play the

Asiad 2023: Indian football team departs for Hangzhou without two players

Defenders Konsam Chinglensana Singh and Lalchungnunga did not accompany the Indian football team that left the country on Sunday for the Asian Games in China as their visa was not ready but a top IOA official said the duo will get their travel documents in a day or two. Chinglensana and Lalchungnunga were apparently not in the initial long list of 50 players submitted by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) for the Asian Games and hence they did get their accreditation even though they were named in the 22-member team named in the last minute. India's Asian Games contingent Chef de Mission Bhupinder Singh Bajwa allayed any fears of the two players missing out of the Asian Games. They will, however, not be available for the first match against China on Tuesday. "I and AIFF president (Kalyan Chaubey) have applied for express visa for the two players with letter from the sports ministry and the visa should come by tomorrow or day after. The Chinese embassy said normal visa will tak