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AIFF Hopes To Appoint Igor Stimac’s Successor By July End

admin — Thu, 04 Jul 2024 17:23:01 +0000

File photo of Igor Stimac.© AFP

The AIFF on Thursday said that it will appoint the new head coach of the national men’s football team by the end of this month, insisting that the federation has received overwhelming interest from across the world for the vacant post. The window for applying for the position ended on Wednesday. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has received a total of 291 applications from all over the world. Out of this, 100 applicants have UEFA Pro License diplomas, while 20 hold AFC Pro License diplomas and three have CONMEBOL licenses.

“We have received an overwhelming response with some of the marquee names having expressed their interest in India,” AIFF chief Kalyan Chaubey said in a statement.

“We are hoping to onboard the candidate by end July, to ensure India utilise the September FIFA window participation.

“As a next step, our committee headed by AIFF Vice President Mr NA Haris (along with Committee Chairpersons of Technical, League, Competitions, Finance, Development and the Treasurer) will review the applications, before placing the select list to the Executive Committee,” he added.

The position is lying vacant after the AIFF sacked Igor Stimac last month, terminating his contract in the wake of India’s ouster from FIFA World Cup Qualifiers despite getting a relatively easy draw.

Stimac, who was appointed as the head coach in 2019, was in last October given an extension until 2026 by the sport’s apex body.

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Focus Is On Progressing To Third Phase Of Qualifying: Igor Stimac Ahead Of Afghanistan Clash

admin — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 16:21:55 +0000

India is approaching the World Cup qualifying match against Afghanistan with a clear mindset and the focus is to secure a spot in the third phase of the qualifiers for the first time, said football coach Igor Stimac on Thursday. India will play back-to-back games against Afghanistan as part of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 AFC Asian Cup joint qualifiers round 2, the first of which will take place in Abha, Saudi Arabia on March 21. India will then play their home game against Afghanistan in Guwahati on March 26.

“We will go there to try and win the game. We are not looking at any massive calculations right now. Once we all get there, we will start talking about how to win the game from the very first second,” Stimac said in an AIFF release.

In November last year, India had began their Joint Qualification Round 2 campaign, logging full points against Kuwait, courtesy Manvir Singh’s all-important goal in Kuwait City but then suffered a 0-3 loss at the hands of Qatar in Bhubaneswar.

The Blue Tigers currently stand level on three points with Kuwait but have an inferior goal difference in Group A.

They will be looking to bring their performances back on track after the disappointments of the AFC Asian Cup in January, when India lost against Australia (0-2), Uzbekistan (0-3), and Syria (0-1) in Qatar.

“We are not a club that can work with the players on a daily basis. If you speak about the Asian Cup, it was of course a disappointment, but mostly for those who were not following us regularly. The expectations were high without any base,” said Stimac.

“That’s behind us, and I’m happy that we have more important things to do now. The focus is on getting from the second phase to the third phase of qualifying,” Stimac said on the sidelines of the AFC Cup Inter-Zone Semi-final match between Odisha FC and Central Coast Mariners FC (Australia).

A top-two finish in their group in the qualifiers will guarantee progression to Round 3 of the qualifiers for India, something that will also ensure direct qualification for AFC Asian Cup 2027.

The Indian team is set to travel on a chartered plane to Abha for their first match against Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan did everything to make it difficult for us, which was expected. Choosing Abha as their home venue at 2,270 metres altitude was a clever decision. Playing there requires great endurance,” said Stimac.

“Whatever the case may be, we are going there with a clear mindset, and we’re looking for the points. Most of our boys are in decent form at their clubs, and hopefully we can overcome all difficulties and find a way to manage the game in a positive way.

“They all have the same dream, so we don’t need to inject any motivation into them. We have never made it to Round 3 before, and if we do that, it will then give them new dreams, to qualify for the World Cup in the future.”

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Unlucky India Lose 2-4 To Malaysia, Bow Out Of Merdeka Cup

admin — Fri, 13 Oct 2023 17:14:17 +0000

Indian football team lost 2-4 to Malaysia in Merdeka Cup.© Twitter

India lost 2-4 to hosts Malaysia in the opening match, a virtual semifinal to bow out of the Merdeka Cup in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. Malaysia took the lead as early as in the seventh minute through Dion Cools before Naorem Mahesh Singh equalised for India with a beautiful volley in the 13 minute. A silly challenge from Nikhil Poojary on Arif Amin inside the Indian box gifted Malaysia a penalty and Amin made no mistake in finding the net from the spot in the 20th minute. To make matters worse for India, Faisal Halim increased the score-line 3-1 in Malaysia’s favour four minutes from half time.

India captain Sunil Chhetri pulled a goal back in the 52nd minute to reduce the margin to 2-3.

Five minutes later, a huge controversy broke out when Lallianzuala Chhangte was denied the equaliser.

Chhangte got the ball inside the box and his shot deflected off Ahmad’s body and it crossed the goal-line before a clearance from Cools but the referee thought otherwise.

India coach Igor Stimac and the entire team looked furious with the decision and understandably so as replays clearly showed the ball indeed crossed the line.

Malaysia added salt to the wounds of the unlucky Indians when Corbin Ong rounded off the tally from close range in the 61st minute.

The Indian should consider themselves unlucky as the score-line doesn’t reflect their performance.

The Blue Tigers were hard done by bad refereeing and a pitch that was riddled with holes. Besides, a pair of shots hit the crossbar. The Merdeka Cup, also known as the ‘mini Asia Cup’, features only three teams — Tajikistan being the third — as strife-torn Palestine had pulled out of the event at the last minute.

Malaysia will now take on Tajikistan in the final on October 17.

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India Top Group To Storm Into SAFF U-19 Semi-finals

admin — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 16:12:28 +0000

India qualified for the SAFF U19 Championship semifinals with a 2-1 victory over Bhutan at the Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu on Monday. Both the teams were locked 1-1 at half-time. Jigme Namgyel gave Bhutan the lead in the 20th minute but India bounced back through goals from Gwgwmsar Goyary and Ricky Meetei. India went into the Group B match with an upperhand, having defeated Bangladesh 3-0. To add to that, Bhutan’s 4-3 victory against Bangladesh meant that India needed only a draw to secure the top spot in the group and subsequently, a place in the semifinals.

In the semifinal, India will cross swords with the hosts Nepal on Wednesday.

A tight contest ensued in the middle of the park as the two sides looked to gain control of the game.

India looked to overload the wings as Raja Harijan sent searching aerial through balls onto the flanks.

However, against the run of play, it was Bhutan who took the lead through Namgyel, whose cross from the right flank fooled everyone and crept into the top corner.

India, for their part, managed to create some confusion inside the Bhutan penalty box, as they sent aerial balls, aiming for their rotating target man.

Kelvin Singh Taorem went through early on but only to collide with Bhutan keeper Penjor Gyeltshen as the ball rolled wide.

Taorem had another opportunity in the 36th minute when a cross from the left by Naoba Meitei was flicked on by the former, but it was saved from point-blank range by Gyeltshen.

The Blue Colts finally had their equaliser almost immediately, when a similar aerial through ball was fed into the box where it bounced over the keeper, before Goyary hustled his way in and nodded it into an empty net.

India started on the front foot in the second half and took the lead in the 64th minute with a corner that was clearly worked out in training.

Yash Chikro, instead of looping the corner into the box, sent a grounded drive to the top of the box, where an unmarked Meetei pounced on the opportunity and side-footed it into the bottom corner with an accurate shot.

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Asian Games 2023 September 24 Schedule: Indians In Action, Events And Timing

admin — Sat, 23 Sep 2023 15:10:04 +0000

Asian Games 2023 officially began on Saturday after a glittering opening ceremony in Hangzhou, China. While several events have already started at the Asian Games 2023, with Indian athletes competing in them, the medal events will start from Sunday (September 24). At the 2018 Asian Games medal tally, India finished eighth. At the Asian Games 2023, the contingent will aim to finish higher in the medal tally. India can win several medals on Sunday.

Asian Games Medals Tally | Asian Games Full Schedule

At least in three sports disciplines, India can bring home medals. The day will start for India with the women’s cricket semi-final against Bangladesh at 6:30 AM IST. A win in the match will ensure India at least a silver medal.

Then Indian shooters will also start their campaign with the 10m air rifle category. Ramita, Mehuli Ghosh, Ashi Chouksey will be in action.

The Indian rowers will be in focus too. The Indian Men’s Lightweight Double Sculls duo of Arjun Lal Jat (bow) and Arvind Singh (stroke) also made it to the Final A. Satnam Singh (bow) and Parminder Singh have qualified for the final in Double Skulls. Indians in Women’s Four Final A too. Babu Lal Yadav and Lekh Ram will play in the Men’s Pair Final A. India team is in the final of the Men’s Eight Final A too.

Apart from the men’s and women’s football teams will be in action. Boxers, led by Nikhat Zareen, will be in action.

Asian Games 2023 September 24 (Sunday) Full Schedule:

Boxing

Women’s 54kg Round of 16: Preeti Pawar (IND) vs Silina Alhasanat (JOR) – 11:45 AM
Women’s 50kg Round of 32: Nikhat Zareen (IND) vs Thi Tam Nguyen (VIE) – 4:30 PM
Cricket

Women’s cricket semi-final 1: India vs Bangladesh – 6:30 AM IST

Chess

Men’s Individual rounds 1 and 2 (Vidit Gujrathi and Arjun Erigaisi) – 12:30 PM onwards
Women’s individual rounds 1 and 2 (Koneru Humpy and Harika Dronavalli) – 12:30 PM onwards

Esports

FC Online Round of 32 and bracket matches (Charanjot Singh and Karman Singh Tikka) – 8:00 AM onwards

Football

Women’s first round Group B: India vs Thailand – 1:30 PM
Men’s first round Group A: India vs Myanmar – 5:00 PM

Fencing

Men’s foil individual (Dev and Bibish Kathiresan) – 6:30 AM onwards
Women’s epee individual (Ena Arora and Taniksha Khatri) – 10:00 AM onwards

Hockey

Preliminary Men’s Pool A: India vs Uzbekistan – 8:45 AM

Modern Pentathlon

Men’s team: Mayank Vaibhav Chaphekar – 3:00 PM

Rugby sevens

Women’s Pool F: India vs Hong Kong – 10:00 AM
Women’s Pool F: India vs Japan – 3:35 PM

Rowing

Women’s lightweight double sculls Final B (Kiran, Anshika Bharti) – 6:30 AM
Men’s lightweight double sculls Final A (Arjun Lal Jat, Arvind Singh) – 7:10 AM – Medal event
Men’s double sculls Final A (Parminder Singh, Satnam Singh) – 8:00 AM – Medal event
Women’s coxless four Final A (Aswathi PB, Mrunamayee Nilesh S, Thangjam Priya Devi, Rukmani) – 8:20 AM – Medal event
Men coxless pair Final A (Babu Lal Yadav, Lekh Ram) – 8:40 AM – Medal event
Men’s coxed eight Final A (Charanjeet Singh, DU Pande, Naresh Kalwaniya, Neeraj, Neetesh Kumar, Ashish, Bheem Singh, Jaswinder Singh, Punit Kumar) – 9:00 AM – Medal event

Sailing

Qualifying races in multiple categories (multiple athletes) – 8:30 AM onwards

Shooting

Women’s 10m air rifle qualification, individual final and team final (Ashi Chouksey, Mehuli Ghosh, Ramita) – 6:00 AM onwards – Medal event

Men’s 25m rapid fire pistol qualification phase 1 (Anish, Vijayveer Sidhu, Adarsh Singh) – 6:30 AM onwards

Swimming

Men’s 100m freestyle heats and final (Anand AS, Tanish George Matthew) – 7:30 AM onwards
Men’s 100m backstroke heats and final (Sriharni Nataraj, Utkarsh Santosh Patil) – 7:30 AM onwards
Women’s 4x100m freestyle relay heats and final (Janhvi Choudhary, Dhinidhi Desinghu, Maana Patel, Shivangi Sarma) – 7:30 AM onwards

Tennis

Men’s doubles round 1: India 2 vs Nepal 1 – 9:30 AM onwards
Men’s singles round 1: Sumit Nagal (IND) vs Marco Ho Tin Leung (MAC) – 9:30 AM onwards

Table Tennis

Women’s team round of 16: India vs Thailand – 7:30 AM
Men’s team round of 16: India vs Kazakhstan – 9:30 AM

Volleyball

Men’s classification 1st-6th: India vs Japan – 12:00 PM

Wushu

Men’s changquan final (Anjul Namdeo, Suraj Singh Mayanglambam) – 6:30 AM
Men’s 56kg 1/8 final: Sunil Singh Mayanglambam (IND) vs Arnel Mandal (PHI) – 5:00 PM onwards – Medal event

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Asian Games 2023: Indian Football Teams To Leave For Hangzhou On Sunday

admin — Sat, 16 Sep 2023 18:05:45 +0000

The Indian men’s and women’s football teams will fly out to Hangzhou on Sunday night for the Asian Games, quelling speculation about some logistical issues with regards to the flight tickets. Bhupender Singh Bajwa, the Indian chef de mission for the Asian Games, told PTI on Saturday that the tickets had been “issued”. The Asian Games are scheduled to commence on September 23 but the football event will kick off from September 19.

“Both the teams are leaving for Hangzhou tomorrow night. Both the tickets have been issued just now (late on Saturday evening). One team is going by Cathay Pacific while the other will be departing by Singapore Airlines,” said Bajwa.

Bajwa also said that his staff, including the deputy chefs de mission, had already reached Hangzhou, while he would be leaving after two days.

Earlier, an All India Football Federation (AIFF) official said that he was confident the teams would fly out on Sunday.

“There are a lot of logistics involved when contingents travel for multi-discipline sporting events and at times there can be some issues here and there. I’m not aware that the tickets have been booked but if the chef de mission is saying this, he would know better as he is the head of the Indian contingent,” said the official.

The men’s and women’s football teams were cleared after the AIFF and the Indian men’s side chief coach Igor Stimac pleaded with the sports ministry to give them an opportunity to compete at the Games despite both the sides not fulfilling the criteria laid down by the ministry.

The ministry took into consideration the Indian men’s team’s recent successes at home against some tough sides before agreeing to their participation in the quadrennial showpiece.

The Sunil Chhetri-led men’s team received a huge boost before their departure for Hangzhou with senior defender Sandesh Jhingan joining the squad after the AIFF arrived at a consensus amid the club-versus-country conundrum.

Several Indian Super League (ISL) clubs had expressed reservations over release of their players for the Asian Games as they would then not have been available for the lucrative domestic league, whose start dates coincide with the continental extravaganza in Hangzhou.

Thirteen players from the original 22-member squad, which was announced last month, were not released by their respective ISL clubs. The players not released included Jhingan and first-choice goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.

However, the AIFF was able to resolve the issue after hectic parleys.

Veteran striker Chhetri will spearhead the Indian challenge and besides his longtime teammate Jhingan, he will also now be able to avail the services of Chinglensana Singh and Lalchungnunga as AIFF added the duo in the squad.

Football competition in the Asian Games is an under-23 affair with three over-aged players permitted per team.

This will be Chhetri’s third Asian Games, the first being the 2006 edition as a 22-year-old under English coach Bob Houghton. The team was led by Bhaichung Bhutia, who was included as one the over-aged players.

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India Emerge SAFF U-16 Champions, Make Short Work Of Bangladesh In Final

admin — Sun, 10 Sep 2023 18:13:26 +0000

India’s U-16 team became winners of the SAFF U-16 Championship by beating Bangladesh 2-0 in the title clash in Thimphu 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 physical style of play.

Key contributors like Mohammad Arbash, Vishal Yadav, and Levis Zangminlun penetrated the Bangladeshi defence with fluid runs and skillful dribbling, making it easier for India to dictate terms from start to finish.

At the heart of India’s defence was the indomitable Karish Soram. Always alert, he fearlessly placed his body in the line of fire whenever the situation demanded. And when Bangladesh found a way past him, India goalkeeper Aheibam Suraj Singh stood like a rock.

India’s initial breakthrough came early, just eight minutes into the match. Levis Zangminlun provided an incisive through ball to forward Bharat Lairenjam, who swiftly invaded the space ahead and slotted the ball between the legs of Bangladesh goalkeeper Mohammad Nahidul Islam to score.

Bangladesh responded to India’s goal and got a chance to equalise but Mohammed Mursed Ali fluffed his lines.

India started the second half with the same intensity. Their relentless search for another goal bore fruit in the 74th minute with a sublime strike.

Samson Ahongshangbam initiated a promising move down the left wing before expertly switching play to send the ball to Levis Zangminlun on the opposite flank.

Engaging in a swift one-two pass with Vishal Yadav, Zangminlun outmanoeuvred his defender to find himself in open space. Taking a moment to set himself, he then unleashed a devastating left-footed strike that sailed into the back of the net, doubling India’s advantage.

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India Crush Maldives 8-0 To Make SAFF U-16 Championship Final

admin — Fri, 08 Sep 2023 15:53:51 +0000

India outplayed Maldives 8-0 to enter SAFF U-16 Championship final.© Twitter

India produced a dominant show to crush Maldives 8-0 in the semifinal and qualify for the SAFF U-16 Championship summit clash on Friday. While Aiborlang Kharthangmaw and Mohammad Arbash scored a brace each, Vishal Yadav, Mohammed Kaif, Levis Zangminlun and Manbhakupar Malngiang scored one goal apiece. The Blue Colts controlled the proceedings from the beginning and created several chances before taking the lead in the 21st minute, when Karish Soram’s aerial assist saw Yadav go past a couple of defenders to shoot the ball in.

While Maldives goalkeeper Ahmed Mifzal did well to deny the Indians in just over the 30 minute mark, Mate Ngamgouhou’s corner kick in the 36th was comfortably headed in by Kaif.

India were ahead 2-0 at the half time break.

After a strong start to the second half, Zangminlun fired in the third goal in the 53rd minute with Yaipharemba Chingkham presenting a pass from the left flank.

While India coach Ishfaq Ahmed made three changes, Kharthangmaw and Malngiang scored one goal each in the 62nd and 70th minutes respectively.

Ahmed also substituted the goalkeeper, bringing in Rohit for Suraj Singh.

In the 77th and 84th minutes, Arbash netted a brace to make it 7-0 for India, before Kharthangmaw completed his brace in the 82nd to end the annihilation.

India will be up against the winner of the other semifinal fixture between Pakistan and Bangladesh, in the final to be played on Sunday.

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India Lose To Iraq In Shootout After Conceding Debatable Penalty At King’s Cup

admin — Thu, 07 Sep 2023 15:01:25 +0000

The regulation time saw the teams ending at 2-2. As a result, it went to the penalty shootout.© Twitter

A Sunil Chhetri-less India conceded a late goal off a debatable penalty to miss out on their first ever win over higher-ranked Iraq who won via penalty shootout in the King’s Cup in Chiang Mai, Thailand on Thursday. India were leading 2-1 till the 79th minute when the referee awarded a soft penalty to Iraq after their striker Aymen Ghadhban was squeezed by two defenders in the box during a tussle to get on to a high cross. It did not look like a clear-cut penalty but Ghadhban himself stepped up to take the kick from the spot and scored to level the match 2-2 and take it to the penalty shootout.

Iraq then won 5-4 in the shootout with Brandon Fernandez failing to score as his kick hit the post and went out.

Under the tournament’s rule, the match will be decided via penalty shootout if the scores are levelled in the regulation time and there will be no extra time play.

It was a creditable show by the Indian team, which was without their talismanic striker and captain Chhetri, who missed the tournament after becoming a father recently. India played on equal terms against Iraq, ranked 70th in the FIFA chart (as against their 99th), for the most part of the semifinal match.

Earlier, Mahesh Naorem had given India the lead in the 16th minute before Karim Ali equalised in the 28th minute, also from a penalty goal.

India took the lead in the 51st minute with Iraq captain and goalkeeper Jalal Hasan conceding an own goal with a howler of an effort.

Iraq were reduced to 10 men in the injury stoppage time as Zidane Iqbal was sent off for elbowing Brandon Fernandez but India could not capitalise much on that as the regulation time ended within a minute and there was no extra time of play.

The loss ended India’s 11-match unbeaten streak this year.

India had played seven matches against Iraq earlier with the ‘Lions of Mesopotamia’ winning six times, while one game had ended in a draw.

The two teams played last in November 2010 in an international friendly match when Iraq won 2-0.

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