Page 6 - Indian Football

La Liga signs agreement to set up football academy in West Bengal

Spanish football league La Liga signed an agreement with the West Bengal government to set up an academy in the state for nurturing young talents, an official said on Friday. The MoU was signed during a closed-door meeting between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and La Liga president Javier Tebas in Madrid, he said. Banerjee, who is on a 12-day trip to Spain, met Tebas in Madrid on Thursday evening and held a closed-door meeting, which focussed on strengthening relations through linking sports and cultural institutions. "This remarkable MoU intends to promote football to foster sportsmanship, health, and prosperity. La Liga will develop a football training academy in West Bengal," the official said. According to the agreement, coaches and players from the state will be trained by the coaches of La Liga. They will also share their experience and expertise to assist the football clubs of West Bengal and make them self-sustainable, the official said. Banerjee was accompanied by forme

Time has come to put all cards on table: Stimac on astrologer controversy

In the eye of the storm for his alleged correspondence with an astrologer during the Asian Cup Qualifiers, India coach Igor Stimac on Tuesday hinted at major revelations ahead and reaffirmed his dream of transforming the country into a footballing nation. The controversy has once again cast a shadow over Indian football and this time the national men's team coach is being linked to it. "Target or honest fighter for the betterment of Indian football? The time is coming to put all cards on the table and see how much and who really cares about football in this country," Stimac posted on X (formerly Twitter). "Give it a thought before making up your judgment and thanks once again for your support. My dream of making India a football nation is still alive," he added. That the AIFF had hired an astrologer for predictions on the Indian football team, for an estimated cost of Rs 16 lakh, was reported by PTI earlier. As per media reports, Stimac was directly in touch with the astrologer to

Indian football coach Stimac picked team on astrologer's advice: Report

Then secretary-general of AIFF Kushal Das said that astrologer Bhupesh Sharma was paid Rs 12 to 15 lakh for his services for May and June 2022

King's Cup Football: India squander chances to lose 0-1 to Lebanon

A 77th-minute strike by Kaseem Al Zein put paid to India's hopes of retaining the third place in the King's Cup football tournament as Lebanon emerged 1-0 winners here on Sunday. Lebanon, who couldn't get the better of India in their last two meetings in Bhubaneswar and Bangalore, proved to be third time lucky despite the Blue Tigers putting immense pressure on the rival defence, especially during the closing stages. Just when it looked like India would force open the Lebanon defence at any moment, things completely went the other way as the west Asian side made most of a corner kick. While Indian goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu managed to palm away the first attempt, he had no time to do an encore when Kaseem Al Zein went for a spectacular acrobatic back volley from close range. It was a goal that certainly came against the run of play but made all the difference as the Indians failed to come up with a fitting reply. Thus India, the bronze medal winners in 2019, finished their .

India emerge SAFF U-16 champions, make short work of Bangladesh in final

India's U-16 team became winners of the SAFF U-16 Championship by beating Bangladesh 2-0 in the title clash here on Sunday. Bharat Lairenjam (8th minute) found the net in the first half, while Levis Zangminlun (74th) sealed the victory with a second-half goal at the Changlimithang Stadium. Guided by head coach Ishfaq Ahmed, the Blue Colts had a sparkling run throughout the championship. They exhibited a brand of free-flowing, attacking football that left opponents struggling. They finished top of Group A after edging out Bangladesh and Nepal with 1-0 victories in both instances. Their semi-final clash with the Maldives was a masterclass in offence, resulting in an 8-0 triumph. Remarkably, the team accomplished all of this without conceding a single goal throughout the tournament. In the final against Bangladesh, India displayed tactical prowess and control. With adept ball distribution and intelligent utilisation of available space, they effectively countered Bangladesh's more ...

India concede late to lose 1-2 to China in AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers

India conceded a late goal to lose 1-2 against hosts China in the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers here on Saturday. No Indian player managed to register his name on the score sheet as China's Hu Hetao scored an own goal. Tao Qianglong and Naibijiang Mohemati were the goal scorers of the match. Both teams went back and forth with their series of attacks initially into the game, but the deadlock refused to be broken, as it remained goalless at half-time. Following the switch of ends, the Chinese elevated their assertiveness, making Indian goalkeeper Prabhsukhan Singh Gill do some hard work and come up with some saves. The deadlock was eventually broken in the 68th minute when Vibin Mohanan conceded a penalty off a sliding tackle. Skipper Qianglong easily converted it to give China the lead However, India managed to level the score in the 92nd minute thanks to an own goal by China. Narender Gehlot took a smart low drive from a melee and the ball hit China's Hetao before rolling into th

After impressive show against Iraq, Indian football team face Lebanon

Heartbroken but head held high after their penalty shootout loss to Iraq in the semifinals, India would look to continue their recent domination against Lebanon when they face off in the third-place match of Kings Cup here on Sunday. India were just 10 minutes away from recording their maiden win over higher-ranked Iraq but the West Asian country equalised (2-2) though a debatable penalty and then went on to win the semifinal match 5-4 on shootout. Head coach Igor Stimac had lashed out at the referee for "robbing" India of a victory. Captain Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was also critical of the 80th minute penalty awarded to Iraq after their striker Ghadhban was squeezed by two Indian defenders inside the box during a high-ball tussle. India will, however, gain a lot of confidence from the feisty fight against 70th ranked Iraq and the world number 99 Stimac's side will hope to sign off the tournament with a win and end at third place. India and Lebanon had played against each other three

Durand Cup final: 10-man Mohun Bagan edge East Bengal in race to the title

Mohun Bagan Super Giants won the Kolkata Derby 1-0 to win the Durand Cup for the record 17th time, thereby pipping their arch-rivals to the coveted title of holder of most Durand Cup trophies

Indian football coach Stimac show caused by AIFF for breach of agreement

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Saturday issued a show-cause notice to senior men's team head coach Igor Stimac for making comments construed as a breach of agreement by his employers. Hitting out at some of the ISL clubs for their unwillingness to release players for the national camp in preparation for the Asian Games, World Cup Qualifiers and the Asian Cup, Stimac said if Indian football needs his help, he will need to tell the truth. The former Croatian defender coming out in the open with his views didn't go down well with the AIFF brass, as they sought a response from the coach. "This is not just about the recent comments but it has been happening for a while now. He is in breach of his agreement with the AIFF. If he has any issues, he could have discussed it with the federation directly rather than going public," a source close to the AIFF told PTI. "Let's see what he writes in his response. Only then can the federation decide on how to handle the matter." Stima

Bhubaneswar, Guwahati to host India's first two FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

Bhubaneswar and Guwahati will host India's opening two home matches in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualification Round 2, the All India Football Federation announced on Saturday. India have been drawn in Group A of the Asian qualifiers, alongside Qatar, Kuwait, and the winners of the Preliminary Joint Qualification Round 1 fixture between Afghanistan and Mongolia. The Blue Tigers will open their campaign with an away fixture against Kuwait on November 16 before hosting reigning AFC Asian Cup champions Qatar at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on November 21 this year. In 2024, India will play back-to-back matches against Afghanistan or Mongolia, starting with the away fixture on March 21 and then return home to the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Guwahati, where they will play the second leg of the tie on March 26. "We would like to congratulate Football Association of Odisha and Assam Football Association on successfully bidding for the hosting righ

Arch-rivals Mohun Bagan, East Bengal to fight it out for Durand Cup title

The stage is set for the year's biggest face-off in Indian domestic football as fierce rivals Mohun Bagan Super Giants and East Bengal FC lock horns in the grand finale of the Durand Cup here on Sunday. It will be a battle of nerves and emotions between the two giants at the Salt Lake Stadium, as fans of both teams get ready to paint the stadium in green and maroon and red and gold. The clash would be a repeat of the 2004 Durand Cup final, which East Bengal won 2-1. The Red and Gold brigade has won the tournament on 16 occasions, sharing the record with the Mariners. While East Bengal last won the tournament in 2004, the last title that it had won was back in 2018, the IFA Shield, which is an U-19 event now. As for its performance in the tournament this year, it has played five matches and stayed unbeaten, winning four and drawing one. While it drew against Bangladesh Army 2-2 in the group stage, it beat Mohun Bagan (1-0) and Punjab FC (1-0) before getting the better of Gokulam K

Indian women's football has better chance of progressing globally: AIFF

All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey feels the women's game in the country has a "better chance" to progress in international football and backs the senior team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup with some more effort. Chaubey, a former India player, completed one year as president of the AIFF and since he took charge, the federation has been making an effort to improve the standard of women's football. "I want to make sure that women's football gets all the facilities that men's football enjoys in India and truly believe we have a better chance of progressing internationally in women's football," Chaubey told the AIFF website. "Our women's football team is ahead of our men's team in terms of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup because the women's team is ranked 11th in Asia. If we do just a little bit better we can qualify for the FIFA Women's World Cup. "People who have been following Indian Football for decades will say we performed very well internationall

Durand Cup final: It's Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal on 'Super Sunday'

Albanian Armando Sadiku shrugged off his poor form to inspire Mohun Bagan to a come-from-behind 2-1 win over FC Goa in the Durand Cup semifinal here on Thursday. The win paved the way for a fairytale Durand Cup finale on 'Super Sunday' as it set up Mohun Bagan's derby showdown against arch-rivals East Bengal in a repeat of 2004 final. A compact and defence-heavy FC Goa drew the first blood with their Moroccan midfielder Noah Sadaoui's 23rd minute strike. Mohun Bagan took the penalty route to restore parity with Jason Cumming scoring from the spot in the 42nd minute in what appeared to be a contentious call by referee Ashwin. Four minutes after he replaced Hugo Boumous, Armenian substitute Sadiku overcame criticism to score the most-important goal of his career at the Mariners. He capitalised on a Sandesh Jhingan howler to strike home the lead -- and eventual winner -- in the 61st minute. Ferrando bolstered his defence in the final minutes, bringing in Brendan Hamill and Liston Col

Durand Cup: Team effort helps FC Goa beat Chennaiyin FC 4-1 to enter semis

Former champions FC Goa marched into the 132nd Durand Cup football tournament semifinals, defeating Chennaiyin FC 4-1, here on Saturday. Carl Mchugh (30th), Carlos Martinez (37th), Noah Sadoui (90+1st) and Victor Rodriguez (90+3d) were the goalscorers for the Goan side. Bikash Yumnam opened the scoring for Chennaiyin in the fifth minute when he found the net from a corner. The Gaurs responded with fervour, with Martinez hitting the bar and Udanta missing an opportunity. They equalised after 30 minutes when Udanta's cross was headed back by Noah and converted by new signing Mchugh. Goa's Noah and Carlos both came close to scoring, but Chennaiyin's Samik denied them. Spaniard Martinez then executed an exceptional chip, securing the Gaurs' comeback with his third goal of the tournament. Chennaiyin substituted to counter Noah's threat and began the second half more assertively. Dheeraj made crucial saves to thwart Chennaiyin's Ayush Sangwan's efforts. In the added time, Noah broug

Mumbai City to play AFC Champions League home games in Pune

Indian Super League side Mumbai City FC will play its AFC Champions League home games at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, Pune. The change in the venue is due to the present infrastructural set up at the Mumbai Football Arena, which makes it ineligible to host AFC Champions League games. Mumbai City FC will set up its base in Pune for their three home games in the Group Stage of the 2023-24 AFC Champions League. Mumbai City FC will find out their opponents at the group stage draw, scheduled to be held at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur on August 24.

Durand Cup: Quarterfinal berths confirmed, Mohun Bagan face Mumbai City FC

Defending Indian Super League champions Mohun Bagan and Shield winners Mumbai City FC will renew their rivalry when they clash in the Durand Cup quarterfinals. The quarterfinals lineup of the Durand Cup was announced on Tuesday. East Bengal will take on Gokulam Kerala as the two city heavyweights will play both their respective last-eight matches on home turf. Guwahati will host the other two quarterfinals with NorthEast United FC facing Indian Army FT on Thursday, while FC Goa will take on Chennaiyin FC on Saturday. QF LINEUP ====== NothEast United FC v Indian Army FT (Aug 24, Guwahati); East Bengal v Gokulam Kerala FC (Aug 25, Kolkata); FC Goa v Chennaiyin FC (Aug 26, Guwahati); Mohun Bagan Super Giant v Mumbai City FC (Aug 27, Kolkata).

AFC Asian Cup football: Lusail Stadium to host the opener and summit clash

The iconic Lusail Stadium that hosted the World Cup final last year will host the opening and final matches of the AFC Asian Cup, the local organising committee announced on Monday. The tournament will kick off with defending champions Qatar taking on Lebanon in Group A on January 12 while the final is scheduled to be played on February 10. The Indian team are grouped with 2015 champions Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria in Group B and will begin their campaign against the Socceroos on January 13.

Mohmmed Habib: 'Bade Miyaan' of Kolkata Maidan's 'That 70s show'

He didn't have a bicycle kick like Shyam Thapa nor could he pulverise opposition with the bulldozer-like masculinity of Subhash Bhowmick. He was also not in possession of an aesthetically pleasing left foot, like Prasun Banerjee had, yet there wasn't a bigger crowd-puller than Mohammed Habib who ruled the hearts of Indian football fans from 1970 to 1980. The former India captain, who died on Tuesday aged 74, represented the country in 35 international matches and scored 11 goals, but it is his exploits for Mohun Bagan and East Bengal that became a part of Indian football's folklore. The Hyderabadi was part of the Indian football team that won the Asian Games bronze in Bangkok and was perhaps the second most revered No. 10 in the country after the late Chuni Goswami. The land of nizams gifted Indian football some of its greatest names from coach SA Hakim to Yusuf Khan and former India captain Syed Nayeemuddin but no one could tug the strings of a Kolkata football lover's heart like

Durand Cup: Indian Air Force hold defending champs Bengaluru FC to 1-1 draw

Defending champions Bengaluru FC failed to break the Indian Air Force FT's defence to settle for a 1-1 draw in their Durand Cup opener here on Monday. Vivek Kumar (21st) put the Air Men ahead in the first half after a defensive error, only for BFC's Salam Johnson Singh to draw level in the 59th minute. The Bibiano Fernandes-coached side, who are playing a youth team, made all the substitutions to bolster their attack but failed to get the winning goal and settled for a point. Robin Yadav had the best chance of clinching it for the champions, when he followed an Edmund free-kick beautifully at the far post, but his header from hand-shaking distance found Air Force keeper Dinesh's glove, struck the left upright and went out for a corner. Playing in a 4-4-3 formation, BFC had the lion's share of possession in the game. They also had 14 shots at goal to their opponent's six, with six of those shots on target, but despite seven minutes added on in the end, the deadlock could not be ...

AIFF studying feasibility of allowing PIO footballers in national teams

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Monday formed a task force to conduct a feasibility study of allowing Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) to play in the country's national teams. Under the existing law of the land, PIOs and OCIs are not allowed to represent the country in international sporting events unless they adopt Indian citizenship. The task force, constituted by AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey, will evaluate the PIO and OCI footballers playing at a higher level and the status of youth players. The task force, which will submit its report by January 31 next year, will be chaired by Punjab Football Association president Samir Thapar. Chaubey will name the other members of the task force after consultations with the chairman and the Executive Committee of the AIFF. "The Task Force's primary objective will be to collect data on footballers who are either Overseas Citizens of India or Persons of Indian Origin. It is a matter of great prid