FIFA World Player of the Year 2008 - List of nominated players

31.10.2008 :The final list of candidates for Fifa World Player of the Year have been drawn up. The favourite for the competition is Ronaldo (Man Utd/Portugal) who had an outstaning season last year.This award is decided by a poll of national team captains and coaches and the winner announced at a ceremony in Zurich in January next year. A 10-name shortlist for the Fifa women’s world player of the year award has also been published.

THE LIST - MEN

Emmanuel Adebayor (Togo), Sergio Aguero (Argentina), Andrei Arshavin (Russia), Michael Ballack (Germany), Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Iker Casillas (Spain), Deco (Portugal), Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast), Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon), Cesc Fabregas (Spain), Steven Gerrard (England), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden), Andres Iniesta (Spain), Kaka (Brazil), Frank Lampard (England), Lionel Messi (Argentina), Franck Ribery (France), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), John Terry (England), Fernando Torres (Spain), Ruud van Nistelrooy (Netherlands), David Villa (Spain) and Xavi (Spain). THE LIST - WOMEN Nadine Angerer (Germany), Shannon Boxx (USA), Cristiane (Brazil), Daniela (Brazil), Marta (Brazil), Birgit Prinz (Germany), Christine Sinclair (Canada), Kelly Smith (England), Hope Solo (USA) and Ingvild Stensland (Norway).

10-men Mohun Bagan upset reigning champions

31.10.2008 : Francis d costa : A resurgent M Mohun Bagan team defeated Dempo SC by a solitary goal in an I-League match played here at Goa to register their first win in this League. Mohun Bagan who earlier were at the bottom end of the points table with only 3 points from 5 matches needed three points badly to improve their position and move out of the relegation zone. Coach Karim Bencherifa's faith on the younger players payed off as the team played much better than in the earlier matches and managed to prevent the marauding Dempo forwards from doing any damage. Goalkeeper Sangram Mukherjee played well to thwart them on several occassions. The all-important goal was scored by the wily Jose Ramires Barreto in the 52nd minute of the match off a penalty after Bhaichung Bhutia was tripped inside the penalty area. Defender Anandavasan got two yellow cards card within a span of 7 minutes and so was shown the red card in the 30th minute of the match. Thus Mohun Bagan had to play with 10 men but still managed to stop Dempo SC from equalising. Mohun Bagan Defender Deepak Kumar Mandal was adjudged the most valuable player of the match for his streling performance in keeping the Dempo forwards at bay. This win will surely infuse lot of confidence in the team as well as hope and enthusiasm to the fans and supporters who got a belated Diwali gift!

M.Mohun Bagan:: 1-Sangram Mukherjee, 4-Deepak Mondal, 29- Anandavasan, 14-Peter Odafe, 5-Habibur Rehman , 11-Ishfaq Ahmed ,16-James Singh Sr.(19-Tulunga), 30-Marcos Pereira, 10-Jose Barreto, 15-Baichung Bhutia ( 37-Lal Kamal Bhowmick) DEMPO S.C: 21-Satish Kumar, 28-Mahesh Gawli, 16-Samir Naik (29-Clifftom Gonsalvez), 14-Anthony Pereira, 8-Climax Lawrence , 18-Valeriano Rebello, 3-John Dias,15-Clifford Miranda ,7-Nacimento Silveriea (17-Joaquim Abranches), 9-Ranty Martins, 20-Mboyo Iyomi.

India participants of AFC General Manager Seminar at Kuala Lumpur

31.10.2008 :To provide information and knowledge for club management and to raise the level of General Managers in Asia, the AFC is looking to increase the professionalism of the personnel managing the participating clubs in AFC Champions League 2009.In this regard, AFC General Manager Seminar of the participating Clubs of ACL was held at Kula Lumpur on 28th - 29th October at Hotel Hilro Petaling Jaya,Malaysia. Nine I-League Teams representatives of India were present at the above mentiond course except Mohammedan S.C .Henry Menezes from Mumbai F.C, R.Natarajan from Mahindra United,Prince Rufus from Mohun Bagan A.C,Kalyan Mazumder from East Bengal, Siddartha Bhattacharyya from Chirag United,V.G.Fernandes from Sporting Goa, Sukhbinder Singh from JCT, Francisco Souza from Vasco F.C and Jose Custodio from Dempo S.C . About 160 General Managers from 14 Asian Countries like Australia,China,Iran, Japan,South Korea, Qater,Indonesia,Saudi Arabia,Singapore,Thailand,UAE, Uzbekistan,Vietnam and India.These are the Countries which have got a direct berth to AFC Champions League 2009 or those which would have to play in the Qualifiers. In the beginning of the seminar it was pointed out that the Asian Countries and Asian Football Clubs were not successful in the World Football arena and so the AFC it's member Associations and the Clubs under them would have to be move proactive in order to raise the standard the Asian Football. On the 2nd day each country gave a presentation related to football problems in that particular country. The General Managers of India prepared a presentation on "Strategic Planning for increasing revenue from ticket sales" . At the end of the seminar AFC president Mr. Mohamed bin Hammam said that, participants now had a greater role to play in the overall development of Asian Football than ever before.He stated that, each one must gives sincere effort and should not say that it can't be done.He emphasized how Japan has progressed under the leadership of captain Kawaguchi. There was simultaneous interpretation of the speeches and comments in seven different languages like Chinese,Russian,Arabic and Indonesian apart from English. Participants' comments about this Seminar : Mr.Prince Rufus (M.Mohun Bagan A.C) : "It was a very enriching experience and a treat platform to exchange views, share ideas and learn new things. Such Seminars and workshops should be held more in future for the development of Indian Football because it gives us better ways of doing things and influences us to think and do things differently from the way it is being done now". Mr.Siddarth Bhattacharyya (Chirag United F.C) :We learnt a lot of new things. Overall it was very enjoyable and educative for all the participants. We all got to know about the progress of Football in some of the advanced Asian nations like Japan. Chirag United will benefit immensely from the new ideas and concepts gained during the course of these two days.

AFC Headquarter to shift from Malaysia very soon ?..

31.10.2008 : AFC has started a bidding process as to which country will be the AFC headquarter in near future. The AFC was formed on May 8, 1954 in Manila, Philippines and its secretariat had hopped from Hong Kong to Penang in 1965, followed by Ipoh, Perak (1975) and Kuala Lumpur (1978) before finally settling in its own building 'AFC House', in 2000 in Bukit Jalil . However due to difference in opinion with Malaysian Govt. AFC wants to move out there headquarter from Kuala Lumpur . AFC has demanded free use of stadiums, indoor facilities and training fields, excellent international and domestic transportation networks and a sufficient number of five-star hotels to cater to AFC's guests and other Infrastructures when it organises competitions in the host city AFC also expects from the bidding cities a 20 year interest free Loans and Diplomatic status for the top AFC officials.Minimum of 30,000 square metres of land on which the headquarters and other facilities will be built as necessary criteria which some Federations are supporting this move,others are not. Thailand has bid for the process but it seems that Qatar would be ahead. Incidentally AFC President Mr. Bin Hammam belongs to Qatar.

Holder Dempo crushes Air India..

26.10.2008 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya :Defending Champion Dempo came back with a bang by thrashing Bimal Ghosh’s Air India 3-1 today in Fatorda. Dempo looked a more focused side coming back fromtheir disastrous AFC semi-final clash.Ranty Martins did all the damage as he scored twice in 38th and 78th minute and not to forget Climax Lawrence who troubled the Mumbai outfit throughout the match by supplying from the midfield.He doubled the lead for the Goan outfit in the 55th minute of the game. Air India lost their keeper Arup Debnath in the middle of the match due to an injury. Dempo scored their first goal through a penalty when Ranty was disrupted by Air India custodian Arup Debnath. Dempo medio Climax Lawrence bagged the Man of the Match for his superb performance today.Dempo have now gathered 6 points from their 3 matches and are looking very strong.

Royal Bengal Derby ended in a draw..

25.10.2008 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya :The much anticipated Bengal Derby between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan ended in a 1-1 draw today in Yuva Bharati Krirangan,Salt Lake Stadium.The 288th Derby match between this two prestigious kolkata team registered its 100 draw today.In all the match had the fire,the ice and last but not the least the big dynamite. Mohun Bagan has been a better opposition in Salt Lake Stadium in recent past and has maintain an unbeaten record against its Red & Yellow counterpart since CFL Premier Division,2005. India and Mohun Bagan Captain Baichung Bhutia made his presence felt in the 2nd minute of the game when he ease past the East Bengal defence after being superbly assisted by Ishfaq Ahmed.East Bengal custodian Subrata Paul came charging down to save the ball but the Sikkimese Scorpian made no mistake and gave the mariners an early lead. The pitch was slippery as there was a slight drizzle since morning and East Bengal players had difficulties of settling down in the early part of the game that gave Mohun Bagan to capitalize.Ishfaq Ahmed played a monster of a role for them and also not to forget Jose Ramirez Barreto who had a decent game. The tempo and the temper were both high not only in the stands but also in the field as we saw players often getting into a brawl.First it was Ishfaq and East Bengal defender Suley Musah in the 20th minute and then it was Surkumar Singh in the very first minute of the 2nd half for which he was red carded after he slammed down Baichung Bhutia. Mohun Bagan came close of scoring again in the 28th minute,when Ishfaq’s pass found Barreto who kept it down for Baichung.But the Bagan captain failed to convert it as he was challenged from the back.It looked like a foul and could have helped Mohun Bagan to earn a penalty but refree Pradeep Kumar turned it down. East Bengal seemed more of a settled team after 25th minute of the game. Yakubu came close of scoring for Red & Yellow brigade form a free kick in the 29th minute but sadly could only disturb the woodwork and not to forget Mohun Bagan custodian Shilton Paul.Mama came as a substitute in 31st minute after Bencherifa decided to replace Lal Kamal Bhowmick.East Bengal came back with a fiery equalizer in the 39th minute when Yakubu’s passed found Syed Rahim Nabi in the Mariners box who placed the ball into the mariners net and levelling the game for East Bengal in turn exposing the achillies heel of Bagan defence.Sunil Chetri came close of heading the ball in the Bagan net in the last minute of the first half but was safely parried away by Shilton Paul. The second half saw Mohun Bagan Goalkeeper Shilton Paul being substituted by a more experienced Sangram Mukherjee who responded quickly by saving couple of brilliant shots.Rozario’s strategy was hampered when Surkumar was red carded after he slapped Baichung Bhutia who went down in the ground causing an uproar between the two playing sides and not to forget the spectators in the stand.East Bengal Goalkeeper Subrata Paul also picked up an yellow card for his showing rage against the refree.Refree Pradeep Kumar did well to keep things down. Substitutions were made as we saw Sanju Pradhan coming in for Mehtab and Wadoo replacing Malsawmkima.Yakubu did tried to break the Mohun Bagan defence which gained a bit of confidence after East Bengal went down to 10 men but was not able to do so.Mohun Bagan’s Ishfaq Ahmed was adjudged the Man of the Match for today’s game.

M.Mohun Bagan:: 31-Shilton Pal (1-Sangram Mukherjee), 4-Deepak Mondal, 29- Anandavasan, 14-Peter Odafe, 5-Habibur Rehman , 11-Ishfaq Ahmed (16-James Singh Sr.), 30-Marcos Pereira, 20-Rakesh Masih, 37-Lal Kamal Bhowmick (19-Tulunga),10-Jose Barreto, 15-Baichung Bhutia K.F.East Bengal:: 24-Subrata Pal, 27- Surkumar Singh, 2-M. Suresh (3-Nirmal Chetri), 4-Suley Musah, 29-Saumik Dey; 19- Rahim Nabi, 7-Jayanta Sen, 28- Malsawmkima (26-Mehraj din), 14-Mehtab Hussain (22-Sanju Pradhan), 12-Yakubu Yusif, 11-Sunil Chetri RED CARD: Surkumar Singh (KEB- 48')

Churchill beat Vasco 4 - 1

25.10.2008 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya : Odafe Okolie scored a hat-trick to guide Churchill Brothers 4 - 1 win against Vasco S.C in ONGC I-League match at Goa today. Odafe scored in the 40th, 44th and 62th minutes andFelix Chimaokwu scored an another in 41st minute for the winners. Vasco reduced the margin through substitute Agnelo Colaco in the 70th minute of the match. Churchill Brothers, have now collected 10 points from 4 matches while Vasco remained at the bottom with 1 point . In the 40th minute Odafe scored his first goal following a corner kick of Zenith Genius who floated the ball into the box from the right . Next minute Felix scored from a square pass of Odafe. Three minutes later, Odafe gave churchill a 3 - 0 lead while received a through pass from R.Vashum after beating two defenders of Vasco. Again in 62nd mnute Odafe scored the first hat-trick of the I-League with an angular shot off a pass from Naoba Singh . Vasco, managed to reduce the margin in the 70th minute through substitute Agnelo Colaco . Odafe Okolie was awarded Man of the Match today

24.10.2008: Playing For Freedom ::: Historical Shield victory of Mohun Bagan in 1911 Author :: Kausik Bandyopadhyay Kausik Bandyopadhyay is Senior Lecturer in History in North Bengal University. Presently a Fellow at the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies, Kolkata, he is the author of Playing Off the Field: Explorations in the History of Sport (Kolkata: Towards Freedom, 2007) and Khela Jokhon Itihas: Samaj, Sanskriti, Rajniti (Kolkata: Setu, 2007); co-author of Goalless! The Story of a Unique Footballing Nation (New Delhi: Penguin/Viking, 2006); and co-editor of Fringe Nations in World Soccer (London: Routledge, 2008). An Associate Editor of the international journal Soccer and Society, he has written extensively on the history of Indian sport in national and international journals. . Promo of the Book : Mohun Bagan Club’s epochal Indian Football Association Shield victory of 1911 by beating best of European military and civil teams is one of the most oft-spoken themes in all standard literature on the history of sport in India. From learned to laity, most Indians take a legitimate pride in reckoning that sporting success as a historic milestone not only in the history of Indian sport but also in that of Indian nationalism. This book, by unraveling the hitherto unexplored dimensions and implications of the event, attempts to reconstruct the nationalist, racist, social, cultural and commercial significance of the victory in a historical perspective. It is said that, immediately after the victory in the Shield final, an elderly Brahmin wearing a sacred thread (paita), pointing to the Union Jack fluttering on top of Fort William, the emblem of British military presence in Calcutta, asked Shibdas Bhaduri, the caption of the winning team, “Now as you have beaten the military side, when you will you pull that down?” An amazed but emotional Shibdas replied: “When Mohun Bagan will win the Shield the next time.” Coincidentally, it was in 1947 when Mohun Bagan won the Shield again that the Union Jack replaced by Indian tri-colour as India won freedom. The book is available in bookshops in Delhi, while in Kolkata it is available at the following place: Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies 5, Ashraf Mistri Lane Opp. Ballygunge Military Camp Kolkata-700019

OKERO MAGIC HELPS MOHAMMEDAN TO GET 3 POINTS

24.10.2008 : S.Mitra :Mohammedan Sporting today beat Mahindra 1-0 in an I league match held in Salt Lake Stadium. Okero scored the goal in 73rd minute. Mahindra played better football in first half and missed several easy chances. Chiddi played well in first half. In 7th minute, Chiddi centered from the left flank which went straight to Steven who could not head the ball in an empty goal. In 20th minute, Chiddi missed an opportunity when he missed an easy head off Steven center. In 22nd minute, Chiddi beautifully set the ball in the box but surprisingly neither Steven nor Douhog could connect the ball. Mohammedan got the first chance in 30th minute when Okero almost scored via a left footer shot which Subhashish saved but no Mohammedan player was following the ball and Mahindra defence cleared the ball for safety. In 40th minute, from a counter attack, Vimal got the ball in open and instead of passing to Okero who was standing unmarked, he went for gallery show and himself tried to score resulting in an awful shot. In 2nd half, Sukhwinder took a nice shot in 15th minute which narrowly missed target. In 18th minute, Okero tried for a backvolley but could not connect the ball properly, a great attempt indeed. Sabbir then brought in Jothi Kumar in place of Vimal Pariyar, this change should have been taken place much earlier. This changed the complexion of the game and Jothi's run down the left flank caused panic in Mahindra defence. In 72nd minute, Subhashish made a brilliant save off a Gautam header from a Okero center. In the next minute, Okero scored the brilliant goal, Jothi gave a long pass from left flank which went above Pradeep's head and Okero just lobbed the ball above Subhashish who had charged out to clear the ball, a cool headed finish from Okero indeed. In last 10 minutes of the match, Mahindra missed two easy chances, Sushil and Rafi were the culprits. Okero got Man of the Match award. Okero overall had a brilliant game. Both Steven and Pradip disappointed for Mahindra and had to be replaced. Mohammedan has now 5 points from 5 matches. Sabbir Ali was happy by getting full three points and he gave credit to team game. Mahindra coach looked disappointed that his strikers missed so many easy chances.

Mohammedan S.C: 22-T.Tungshang, 19-Gurpreet Singh,3-Madhab Das, 26-Gautam Thakur (34-Lalchhuan Awma), 13-Anit Ghosh, 30-Bijoy Das, 16-Sovan Chakraborty, 20-Adebayo Adewusi, 5- Farooq Hyder; 10-Mike Okoro, 18-Vimal Pariyar (27-A Jyothi Kumar) Mahindra United:1-Subhasish Roy Chowdhury; 7-Sushanth Mathew, 21 Justine Stephen, 23-Steven Dias (28-Sushil Singh), 14- Ravanan, 25-Debabrata Roy (8-Paresh Shivalkar),17-Sukhwinder Singh, 2-N.P. Pradeep (11-Mohammad Rafi), 29-Djidjia Douhou ,10-Edeh Chidi , 4-K.N. Ajayan ,

Sporting Goa beat Mumbai F.C to reach in the top

24.10.2008 : S.Mitra : Mumbai FC's unbeaten run has been stopped by Goan Club Sporting Goa who registered their 4th win in 5 matches after a 1 - 0 victory in the ONGC I-League match played at the Nehru stadium Goa. Sporting, who made their first attack in the 15th minute Nathaniel Amos's shot was blocked by Mumbai keeper Kalyan Chaubey. Sporting took the lead in the 18th minute when Defender Rovan Pereira sent a long cross into the box which Jr. Elija received and raced it into the box and placed from the left side of onrushing Mumbai keeper Kalyan.(1 - 0) In the second half Felix - Hammond combination of Mumbai F.C came off with a good move but the shot of felix was well saved by Goan keeper Felix D'souza. Avishek Yadav missed a golden oppertunity to equalizer,his powerful his header hit the post off a good cross from Subhas Chakraborty from the left flank. The only scorer of the match Elija Jr. of Sporting Goa has been selected Man of the Match. With 4 goals Elija and Odefa Okoli of Churchill is currently the Joint top Scorer .

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JCT hold Chirag United a goalless Dwaw

23.10.2008 : S.Mitra :The Young Purple Brigade of Chirag United without their five key players completely outplayed JCT today AND SHOULD HAVE WON THE MATCH BY 5 - 0 but due to missed chances they could not take full 3 points from this match. The match ended 0 - 0. First 15-20 minutes was evenly matched with both teams attacking. In the very first team, Chirag almost conceded a goal, then in 20th minute a shot from Edu just missed the target. Coach Subrata Bhattacharya then replaced Raleng and brought in Ayan Chowdhury. In 30th minute, Ayan missed a easy header with only goalkeeper to beat. From here on, it was a one way traffic with Chirag creating chances and missing goals. In 35th minute, Soumik missed a header. In 37th minute, Ayan got an easy chance and lot of time to score but his poor strike deflected off a defender. In the very next minute, Chirag got a penalty as JCT defender had handled the ball inside box. However, captain Dulal Biswas's poor penalty was saved by JCT custodian. Just before lemon break, Snehasish ran down the left flank and his center found Ayan inside box who again missed another easy chance to score. In 2nd half also Chirag got 2 more chances to score and Ayan missed the chances. n the 75th minute, Snehasish Chakrabarty again set up Ayan with a measured pass, but Ayan lost the ball to a rival defender. In the last minute, Gopal made a mistake and almost conceded a goal. Snehasish and Saini were brilliant for Chirag and either of them should have got Man of the Match. Instead Anwar Ali of JCT got Man of Match award.

Chirag United : 23- Gopal Das, 2-Louis Ebami, 15-Dulal Biswas, 18-Sukhen Dey(6 - Dhanarajan),7-Hardip Singh Saini, 4-Kingshuk Debnath, 28 - Mrinmoy Chakrabarty,35-Soumik Chakrabarty, 11-Snehasish Chakraborty,32- Sochungmi Raleng (10-Ayan Chowdhury) ,14-Basudeb mondol(26-Subhas Mondol), JCT F.C:: 1-Karanjit Singh; 12-Daljit Singh, 4-Julius Akpele, 3-Anwar Ali, 6-Baljit Singh Sahni (8-Jaswandir Singh) ,2-Jaspal Singh,17-Amamdeep Singh, 19-Randeep Singh,(28-Siuraj Singh), 7-Jagpreet Singh, 9-Balwant Singh, 10-Eduardo Escobar(22-Pawan Kumar).

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PIFA CYFC will play Mumbai Elite next year as well.

23.10.2008: PIFA-CYFC will remain in the Mumbai Elite Division in 2009 as well. The team earlier known as Colaba Youngstar was taken over by PIFA in 2006. PIFA provided the training and financial support for this Colaba community team. In the first year, PIFA-CYFC came runners up in the Mumbai SENIOR Division 2006 and got promoted to Super Division. In the following year, PIFA-CYFC came runners up in the Mumbai SUPER Division 2007 and got promoted to Elite Division. This year, despite having a very low budget due to lack of a sponsor we came 3rd /4th (one game ti be played) in their group and will remain in the Mumbai ELITE Division. Further, young players from this club have gone to represent India & Maharashtra.

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Safa rout Dempo to enter in the final of AFC Cup

21.10.2008: Mohammad Kassas netted a hat-trick as Lebanese side Safa secured their place in the AFC Cup final with an emphatic 4-1 win over Dempo at Gachibowli Stadium on Tuesday. Safa led 1-0 from the first leg in Beirut and Kassas extended their advantage after only nine minutes before scoring his second of the game eight minutes later. Congolese striker Mboyo Iyomi gave the Indian side some hope by pulling a goal back just after the hour but Kassas completed his hat-trick in the dying minutes before Hussain Tahan completed the rout in stoppage time to send Safa through 5-1 on aggregate. Safa held a narrow advantage thanks to Hamze Aboud’s last-minute strike two weeks ago and the hosts went on the offensive from the opening whistle as they attempted to get back on level terms, creating the first chance after seven minutes when Anthony Pereira’s powerful volley went wide. However, it was the visitors who opened the scoring two minutes later when Rony Azar’s free-kick was met by Kassas, who headed his side ahead. Needing three goals to retrieve the tie, Dempo surged forward in attack, leaving huge gaps at the back. Safa took full advantage in the 17th minute as Kassas capitalised of a defensive error and went past three defenders before firing home a powerful shot from inside the area. Dempo would not throw in the towel despite the three-goal deficit and Colaco brought in Joaquim Santan for Nicolau Borges at half-time, a move which paid dividends as the hosts started to create good opportunities in the second half. The Dempo pressure paid off one minute after the hour when Iyomi received a long ball from the back, chesting the ball down and beating two defenders before firing past Safa goalkeeper Nazih Tay. The home side should have levelled the score on the night a minute later when Ranti Martins fired a powerful shot on goal which was well stopped by Tay at full stretch. Dempo continued to exert strong pressure and thought they had pulled another goal back in the dying minutes when Iyomi headed in only to see his effort ruled out for offside. The visitors would add to the score line in the final minute when Kassas turned in a cross by substitute Hussain Tahan from close range to complete his hat-trick. And Tahan netted Safa’s fourth with a header deep into stoppage-time to complete a memorable night for the Lebanese side. Courtesy :www.the-afc.com

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Premier Skills Football Training Programme by British Council

19.10.2008:From 19 - 25 October second phase of Premier Skills Football Training Programme being organised by British Council in collaboration with English Premier League, All India Football Federation (AIFF), Indian Football Association (IFA) and Sports Authority of India (SAI). In March 2008 EPL coaches ex-England and former EPL Team Newcastle United's player Warren Barton and Jamaica's Robbie Earle pick out 40 coaches from 80 participants for the first phase of this project in India. This scheme had been initiated in Egypt last year. Programme at SAI: 1. Pitch side training (on-field training) Programme at SAI:2. Workshop sessions : Demonstration of coaching techniques

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Mohammedan S.C hold Mohun Bagan again

19.10.2008 : Arnab Chowdhury:Mohammedan Sporting hold Kolkata Premier League Winner Mohun Bagan and share points after a 1 - 1 draw in their I-League match at the Salt Lake stadium today. Champion and Runners up of this year's Kolkata Premier League have been unbale to win a single match in I-League till now. Mohammedan striker Mike Okoro and Theodore Sunday combining well went into attack right from the start.For the cause Gautam Thakur gave Mohammedan the lead in the 3rd minute, created by a brilliant final pass from Theodore Sunday,who got the ball from speedy Okoro. Jose Ramirez Barreto equalised for Mohun Bagan in the 24th minute, expertly converting a pass from Malswam Tulunga with a powerful one touch volly. Bagan keeper Shilton Paul also made a few nice saves to earn a point for his side today. Barreto was given a yellow card by referee Suresh of Tamilnadu for assaulting goalkeeper of Mohammedan Sporting. Bagan controlled the rest of the session, but failed to capitalise the chances .Mohun Bagan are now at the 10th position with 2 points , a step ahead of Mohammedan S.C. Rakesh Masih of Mohun Bagan was adjudged man of the match. Upto today's match, out of 225 encounter between these two Giant teams of India, Mohun Bagan won 111 times,while Mohammedan won 40 times, remain 74 matches ended in a draw. In NFL and I-League both teams has played 20 matches till today, where Mohun Bagan won 10 times, Mohammedan won 4 times and 6 matches ended ended in a draw.

M.Mohun Bagan :: 31-Shilton Pal; 4-Deepak Mondal, 27-N. Mohanraj, 19- Tulunga ( Tapan Maity),14-Peter Odafe, 29- Anandavasan, 16-James Singh (6-Henry Gangte), 20-Rakesh Masih, 37-Lal Kamal Bhowmick (22-Kartick Kisku), 11-Ishfaq Ahmed, 10- Barreto, Mohammedan S.c: 22-Tharangachan , 3-Madhab Das, 19-Gurpreet Singh, 13-Anit Ghosh, 30-Bijoy Das; 26-Gautam Thakur, 5- Farooq Hyder, 16-Sovan Chakraborty, 20-Adebayo Adewusi, 11-Theodore Sunday (18-Vimal Pariyar),10-Mike Okoro

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Odafe Magic stopped Sporting's winning streak

19.10.2008 : Arnab Chowdhury:The scoring Magic of Odafe Okolie stopped Sporting Goa's winning streak as Churchill Brothers won 3 - 0 in ONGC I-League match at Nehru Stadium in Margao today. Churchill controlled the match with their strikers.in 14th minutes,a Robert Lalthalwama forward a pass to Odafe from a move from the right flanke. Odafe then pushed the ball a grounder which beat Sporting keeper Felix Souza to his right(1 - 0). Junior Elija, who scored three individual goals in I-league had a good chance in the second half to equalise but his shot was blocked by Churchill Custodian Arindam Bhattacharya. Micky Fernandes and Nathaniel Amos of Sporting also lost two chances in the second half. Churchill increased their lead to 2 - 0 in the 54th minute through Odafe whose powerful punch from the top of the box gave no chance to Sporting keeper Felix Dsouza to block. Churchill Defender Naoba Singh scored the last in 68th minute off a long pass from Odafe.His powerful shot from top of the box went straight to the Sporting Goal (3 - 0). Last Year's Top Scorer with 22 Goals Churchill Captain Odafe Okoli has been awarded Man of the Match for his outstanding play and also scored 4 goals. Churchill now have 7 points with 2 wins and one draw from three matches, while Sporting Goaremained on nine points from four matches . East Bengal returns to Victory through Yakubu brace 18.10.2008 : Arnab Chowdhury:Through a brace by Ghanaian Striker Yusif Yakubu, East Bengal returns to Victory by defeating Vasco Sports Club of Goa 2 - 0 in their fourth round match of the ONGC I-League at Salt Lake Stadium today. Today from the very begenning East Bengal went all out attack and scored their first one in the 7th minute when speedy Yakubu,collecting a ball from Mehrajuddin and pushed the target by beating Vasco Keeper (1-0).East Bbengal Defender Suley Musah lost a goden oppertunity to score from the right side of the Vasco penalty area in the 19th minute. In the 2nd half Yakubu got another golden opportunity but was tripped by the Vasco goalkeeper inside the penalty box but referee P.K. Bose ignored it and instead of giving foul he showed yellow card to Yakubu.In the 55th minute Sunil Chettri's push deflected off the first post. Vasco, could found a goal through their Uzbek striker Rabhson Deshabaev in the 66th minute which was disallowed by the referee P K Bose for off side.East Bengal made sure of earning full three points through Yakubu again in the 89th miutes,when medio Sanju Pradhan pushed the ball to yakubu who netted easily (2-0). Yusif Yakubu of East Bengal adjudjed Man of the Match award today With this victory, East Bengal, who lost twice and won once in their earlier round matches, have earned six points from four matches while Vasco remained at the same tally of one point after four outings. KF East Bengal: 24-Subrata Pal, 2-M. Suresh , 27-Surkumar Singh, 4-Suley Musah, 29-Saumik Dey, 19- Rahim Nabi (15-Dharamjit Singh), 26-Mehrajuddin, 12- Yusif Yakubu, 14-Mehtab Hussain (22-Sanju Pradhan), 28-Malsawmkima, 11-Sunil Chetri (7-Jayanta Sen) Vasco F.C: 20-Laxmikant Kattimani, 32-Sherzod Nazarov, 30-Vincent Pires, 5-Covan Lawrence, 24-Fulganco Cardozo; 31-Yorkin Nazarov, 19-Menino Fernandes (15-Agnelo Colaco), 17-Agnelo D'Souza, 28-Lalnun Puia, 29-Ravshan Teshabaev, 33-Edison Sequira (16-Jose Colaco) Mahindra upsets JCT to open account in I-league      18.10.2008 : Arnab Chowdhury: After continuous Three losts,Durand Cup Winner Mahindra United has got their first victory through a solitary goal over JCT in ONGC I-League away match at Guru Nanak Stadium Ludhiana. JCT dominated first half but failed to capitalise verious chances and Mahindra also wasted a couple of scoring opportunities. After the goalless first half, Mahindra went ahead in the 53rd minute through a nice move by Edeh Chidi who gave a square pass to forward Sukhwinder Singh and he made no mistake to score for Mahindra(1 - 0) .With this victory, Mahindra earned three valuable points . Amandeep Singh of JCT has been awarded Man of the Match today Air India edge past Chirag United by Surojit's Goal      18.10.2008 : Arnab Chowdhury:Air India continued their unbeaten run asthey recorded their second victory over Kolkata Team Chirag United by a solitary goal in ONGC I-League match at the Cooperage in Mumbai. The only goal of the match came in the 71st minute through Air India's Midfielder Surojit Roy off a long throwin by Uttam Singh from the right flank.Substitute Goalkeeper of Chirag United Arindom Ghosh missed the flight of Throwin which landed at the feet of Surojit who easily pushed the ball into the goal.With this Surojit scored 3 goals in 4 matches for his team. In the last moment of first half Chirag missed a scoring oppertrunity through Hardeep Sing Saini but Air India Cusrodian Arup Debnath saved a sure goal through a corner which was punced by Hardeep. Air India's Nigerian stopper and man of the match Chukwuma Udofia will miss the next match against Dempo in Goa after collecting his second yellow. East Bengal Vs Vasco F.C past Records in National League 2000 - 2001 : NFL : 1st Leg: East Bengal 3 - 0 Vasco F.C ----------- : NFL : 2nd Leg: East Bengal 1 - 1 Vasco F.C 2001 - 2002 : NFL : 1st Leg: East Bengal 0 - 1 Vasco F.C ----------- : NFL : 2nd Leg: East Bengal 1 - 0 Vasco F.C 2002 - 2003 : NFL : 1st Leg: East Bengal 1 - 1 Vasco F.C ----------- : NFL : 2nd Leg: East Bengal 4 - 0 Vasco F.C 2003 - 2004 : NFL : 1st Leg: East Bengal 1 - 1 Vasco F.C ----------- : NFL : 2nd Leg: East Bengal 1 - 0 Vasco F.C 2004 - 2005 : NFL : 1st Leg: East Bengal 3 - 0 Vasco F.C ----------- : NFL : 2nd Leg: East Bengal 1 - 3 Vasco F.C Ten I - League Teams invitation in AFC General Managers Seminar at Kuala Lumpur 14.10.2008 :To provide information and knowledge for club management and to raise the level of General Managers in Asia, the AFC is looking to increase the professionalism of the personnel managing the participating clubs in AFC Champions League 2009.In this reagards, AFC is going to organise a General Managers Seminar of the participating Clubs of ACL on and from 28th - 29th October at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The National Football Teams Representatives from Australia,China,Iran,Japan,South Korea, Qater,Indonesia,Saudi Arabia,singapore,Thailand,UAE,Uzbekistan,Vietnam and India will be present at the Seminar. AFC invites ten I-League Teams representatives of India to attend the above mentiond course. The following candidates from India to attend the Seminar: Henry Menezes from Mumbai F.C, R.Natarajan from Mahindra United,Curus Mindo from Mohammedan S.C,Prince Rufus from Mohun Bagan A.C,Kalyan Mazumder from East Bengal ,Siddartha Bhattacharyya from Chirag United,V.G.Fernandes from Sporting Goa,Sukhbinder Singh from JCT, Francisco Souza from Vasco F.C and Jose Custodio from Dempo S.C . Mr. Tokuaki Suzuki will introduce the vision, objectives, activities of AFC Professional League Project and what would be the work of a General Manager. Mr. Paul Barbar of English Premiership Team Tottenham will introduce How to manage a Professional Football Club. There also be the projects of Football Club's Strategic Communication. Air India flies as East Bengal sinks      12.10.2008 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya:East Bengal received a huge blow as they lost their back to back matches to the so called minnows of ONGC I-League.First it was Mumbai FC and now it is Bimal Ghosh’s Air India who defeated Rozario’s troop in Mumbai today. Air India scored through Surojit Roy in 48th minute and Nigerian Michael Tayo in 76th minute to inflict on their rivals their second defeat in three matches. East Bengal missed their key players Sunil Chetri, Edmilson, Alvito D'Cunha and Surkumar Singh as they were trapped by their opponent in their own den. East Bengal changed their coach,had some superb signings but still seems to lack performances.This questions will surely haunt the fans and the management and also not to forget the team and its coach.They need to find a proper balance as early as possible if they want to perform well in their upcoming league matches. Air India's Foreigner Michel Tayo adjudged Man of The Match today. KF East Bengal:: 24-Subrata Paul; 19- Rahim Nabi (14-Mehtab Hossain), 26-Mehrajuddin ( Malsawmkima), 3-Nirmal Chetri, 5- Khelemba Singh, 4-Suley Musah, 29-Saumik Dey, 12-Yakubu , 8- Renedy Singh, 25-Parveen Kumar (7-Jayanta Sen),10-Ashim Biswas, Air India : 24-Arup Debnath; 6- Uttam Kumar Singh (19-Santosh Koli), 2- Napoleon Singh, 3-Ravinder Singh, 28-Michael Tayo, 29-Chukwuma Udofia, 4-Syed Farid, 23-Kailash Patil (12-Subhash Singh), 25-Emmanuel Ovieghara,10-Soccor Velho, 22-Surojit Roy (18-Vijith Shetty), Subrata’s Chirag holds Churchill      12.10.2008 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya:Subrata Bhattacharyya’s tactical tinkering paid-off as Chirag United holds Churchill brothers for a goalless draw in Barasat Stadium today. Chirag United dominated the game courtesy their medio and Man-of the-match Snehashish Chakraborty.Odafa failed to deliver his magical performances as the home team clinched one point from a match where they never expected to score a point. It seems that the newly promoted teams are doing pretty well such as Mumbai FC and Chirag United who thrashed Derek Perreira’s outfit 3-1 in their previous encounter.Credit must be given to their Coach Subrata Bhattacharyya who has huge experience of coaching the Kolkata teams and his pre-season hardwork seemingly paying rich dividends to his current club as the Kolkata team is now unbeaten for the last two games. Coming back to the match United had a chance of scoring on 30th minute of the game but Snehashis was unable to find glory.Chirag’s Gouranga Dutta’s header went over the bar which could have helped them to earn 3 points today.United keeper Ravikant did a great job by making some brilliant saves. Snehasish Chakrabarty of Chirag United adjudged Man of The Match today. Chirag United : 21- Ravikant Singh, 2-Louis, 15-Dulal Biswas, 18-Sukhen Dey,7-Hardip Singh Saini, 5-Subhashish Roy Chowdhury, 30-Gouranga Dutta, 17-Bidemi Daniel,11-Snehasish Chakraborty,32- Sochungmi Raleng (25-Shankar Oraon,14-Basudeb mondol) 9-Muritala Ali, Churchill Brothers:29-Arindam Bhattacharya; 8- Naoba Singh, 6-M Govin Singh, 19- Gouramangi Singh, 17-Robert Lalthalma; 15-Chandam Singh, 9-Ogba Kalu , 13- Genius Zenith, 11-Khemtang Paite (14-Nicholas Rodrigues), 7-Felix Chimaokwu (35 Balan Bineesh), 10-Odafe Okolie. Defending Champion Dempo registered their first win      12.10.2008 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya: In the other match defending champion Dempo registered their first win in current I-League by beating city rival Vasco F.C 2 - 1 at Goa today. Dempo scored through Beto 24th minutes and and Ranty Martins 30th minutes of the match .Vasco, reduced the margin through the Uzbekistan striker Ravshan Teshabaev in 32 minutes. Defender Sameer Nyek of Dempo has been awarded Man of the Match The win is a booster for Dempo before their return league match against Safa Club of Lebanon in the semifinals of the AFC Cup on October 21 at Hyderabad. Mumbai FC wins the battle of Cooperage      11.10.2008 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya:Mumbai FC continues their dream run in their first I-League Campaign by beating their home rivals Mahindra United by a solitary goal.Cooperage saw two of its evenly matched home teams battiling against each other today.Mahindra United had many chances of scoring but Chidi Edeh didn’t gave them his messianic performance for which he was signed by Derek Perreira. Mumbai FC scored their hattrick of wins by beating Mohun Bagan,East Bengal and Derek Perreira’s beleaguered side today in Cooperage.Mumbai FC went ahead in 23rd minute when their super signing from Mohammedan S.C Kalia Koluthungan scored his 2nd goal in I League for Mumbai F.C after he was brilliantly assisted by Subhas Chakroborty. . Mahindra United has lost all the three matches they played in I-League,2008. Meanwhile Mumbai FC is ranked 2nd in the league table with 9 Points after Sporting Club De Goa who are tied with the Mumbai based team but are ahead on goal difference. James of Mumbai F.C picked up the Man-of the-Match award for this exciting encounter. SEE CURRENT LEAGUE TABLE JCT continues their good form…      JCT continues their good form after they defeated Sabbir Ali’s Mohammedan Sporting 2 - 0 in Guru Nanak Stadium today in the third round of the ONGC I-league match . Sukhwinder Singh got his tactics all correct as they scored a brace against the newly promoted Kolkata side.Baljit Singh Sahni gave them the lead in 46th minute followed by the Man-of the-Match Brazilian Eduardo Escobar Da Silva scoring the second goal in 66th minute of the match. It's the 2nd goal of the Brazilian Striker in this I-League. JCT are placed 3rd in the league table with 7 points after todays match and will be facing Mahindra United on 18th October,2008. Bencherifa’s men defeated again      Mohun Bagan received a huge blow when lost out to Sporting Goa 2-0 today in Margao today in I-League Matches. So much was expected from Karim Bencherifa and his mens but they again disappointed their fans.But Sporting Clube de Goa is now at the top of the League table with 9 points from 3 matches while Mohun Bagan, who suffered their second defeat, have just one point. Mohan Bagan came near scoring in the 21 st minute when Barreto sent a cross pass from right flank to quickly overlaping Isfaq Ahamed but his weak shot easily saved by Sporting goalkeepr Felix D'Souza..In a counter attack, Sporting Striker Joychandra Singh missed an easy oppertunity as his shot hit the cross Bar in the 25th minute. Sporting surged ahead in the 26th minute through Wilton Gomes. The goal was a result of fine combine move when Harmonjot Khabra passed to Joseph Pereira who in quick sucession floated a ball to Wilton Gomes, whose header Mohan Bagan defender N Mohan Raj instead of clearing it touched his leg and went into his own goal and at half time Sporting were leading by 1-0. Mohun Bagan's Mohanraj sadly became the first man in this I-league to score an own goal in 26th minute to clear a powerful header of Wilton Gomes from floating lob of Joseph Pereira. Sporting’s lead was doubled through substitute of Joy Chandra Singh, Nigerian Striker Nathaniel Amos,who headed in a well measured cross pass given by Joseph Pereira . Wilton Gomes picked up the Man-of the-Match award from this encounter. 30th All India Governor’s Gold Cup Football Tournament 10.10.2008 :The 30th All India Governor’s Gold Cup football tournament is slated to be held in Sikkim from October 14th to 25th, announced the organizers, Sikkim Football Association (SFA). Fifteen teams including one each from Nepal and Bhutan are lined up to participate in this prestigious tournament that dates back to 1978. The tournament will also see the debut of the top two football clubs from New Delhi. New Delhi Heroes and Shimla Youngs has been branded as dark horses. We have very high expectations from New Delhi Heroes, Delhi, said Mr. Ethenpa Sikkim Football Association General Secretary. New Delhi Heroes is coached by former football star Chima Okorie and the club has recently bagged the Delhi football league. The tournament is organized by the Sikkim Football Association (SFA) the apex body of all the football organizations in Sikkim with the support from the state government and other organizations. All the matches are played at the Palzor Stadium in a knock out format. NRT from Nepal had won the last year’s tournament. Teams from Kolkata have always performed well in the gold cup with Mohun Bagan winning it record 9 times. East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting have also made their presence felt with the later triumphing twice. N.D.Heroes wlould be participating in the said tournament for the first time and will brave front again formidable sides like Army XI, TFA, BSF amongst others. ‘Gold cup’ for the locals is like a festival, the capital city which hosts the tournament comes alive during the period. The tournament gives the locals a chance to witness the best clubs of India and around in action . The Governor’s Gold Cup is considered to be the most coveted title in football in the North- east. Teams Nepal XI, Bangladesh XI, Army XI, Titanium (Kerela), BSF (Jalandar), Punjab Police, New Delhi Heroes, Tata Football Academy, Mohun Bagan SAIL, Railway FC (Kolkata), BNR (Kolkata), DGHC XI, Simla Youngs (Delhi), United Sikkim Club and Sikkim Police. VIEW LAST YEAR'S ALL RESULTS PIFA International Football camp concluded in Bangalore 08.10.2008 :PIFA concluded their first camp of the series of four PIFA International Football camps planned for India in 2008. The Bangalore camp organised at Inventure Academy from 4-7 October had 32 children including one very talented girl. The coaches werer from England’s Inspire Academy. Sean Clancy & Gary Lewis conducted their traininig sessions like they would at an English Premier League Academy. Sean Clancy saw a lot of improvement by the end of the second day and was very pleased with the outcome. He found the children very responsive and was impressed with their general knowledge of football. Every day he would reward the best player with a hair band that he got from his favourite Liverpool’s player Alhonso. Coach Gary Lewis worked with the older boys. He found them to be talented and quick learners. (Both coaches are die hard Liverpool supporters and were thrilled to see Liverpool come back to beat Manchester City 3-2 after being 2 down.) All campers participated in Fitness tests as well as Skills test involving Passing, Dribbling, Shooting & Control. The top 6 scores were selected to particiapte in the final test – Long Pass. The final skills winner was Zamzei Thouthang from Parikrama with 660 points. On the final day, Nike conducted an interactive clinic – EKIN on the use of the right football gear while playing. They gifted all the children with Nike goodies. Chief Guest Nooraine Fazal, CEO of Inventure Academy closed the camp with an invitation to PIFA to come back very soon. All children received participation certificates. The coaches rewarded three children with Nike prizes from their group. The next camp will be held in Hyderabad from 9-12 Oct 2008 at the Apollo Centre. Dempo lost to Al Safa in nail biting match at Lebanon 07.10.2008 :Al Safa of Lebanon put up a superb performance beating Goan giant Dempo S.C in a nail biting match in the 1st leg Semi Final match of AFC Cup at home in Beirut. However they missed several chances through out the game. Armando Colaco's Dempo was successfully playing defensive in the entire match, in order to keep the goalless draw till the 89th minute when Hamze Abboud netted a superb goal from a corner thereby helping his team gain full 3 points! Dempo will fight their last battle on 21st of this month against Al Safa at Hyderabad. Dempo coach Armando Colaco told that unfortunately they lost the match in the last minute goal but were hoping to earn one point before the return leg in Hyderabad on 21st. Prior to this, Kolkata football team East Bengal had ended in a defeat (0 -1) against this very Lebanese team in their away match but had made a goalless draw in the home match . However, Dempo, in contrary, are now in a must win situation if they're upto creating history. In the other Semifinal match Oman's Al Nahda has earned 1 - 0 away win against Bahrain champions Al- Muharraq in the first leg of this year's AFC Cup through Zaher Al Alawi at 9th minutes at Bahrain National Stadium. Global tournament for the homeless nets £500,000 07.10.2008 :The Vodafone Foundation supports the Homeless World Cup Foundation to develop football programme in over 60 nations The Vodafone Foundation today announces its support for the Homeless World Cup Foundation, with a £500,000 start-up package to be granted over the next two years. The funds will be used by the Homeless World Cup Foundation to build the infrastructure for the development of grass roots football programmes in over 60 nations. The grant will also enable the charity organisation to employ a CEO for the first time. The Homeless World Cup is an annual international tournament which provides the opportunity for homeless people to change their own lives. Starting with just 18 countries, this year’s seven-day contest will unite 56 nations and include a women’s tournament when it kicks off in Melbourne on 1 December 2008. Since being established by social entrepreneur Mel Young in 2003, it has achieved rapid growth. The programme now reaches 30,000 players and has a global ambition to engage one million players in over 75 nations. According to research, 77% of players involved experience a significant life change; no-longer using drugs and alcohol, moving into homes, jobs, education, training, repairing relationships and becoming coaches or players with semi-pro teams. 94% claim to have a renewed motivation for life. Over the last five years, The Vodafone Foundation has invested over £100 million in social investments around the world. It will continue invest in exciting sport initiatives which have the ability to reach out to the most marginalised and disadvantaged groups in communities around the globe. Between now and 2010 The Vodafone Foundation has committed £12million for programmes such as the Homeless World Cup which have positive effects on health, education and help alleviate poverty. Mel Young, President and founder of the Homeless World Cup comments: “The Homeless World Cup has demonstrated that football can change lives, it can change the world. We are extremely grateful to The Vodafone Foundation’s start-up funding which provides a giant leap towards building a £5million annual fund to achieve our ambitions. We have a fabulous opportunity ahead, a great challenge and we need more people and more organisations to take The Vodafone Foundation’s innovative lead to get football changing the world.” Andrew Dunnett, Director of The Vodafone Foundation says: “We are delighted to support a project that has an enterprising attitude to make a difference on an international scale. The Vodafone Foundation is committed to funding projects that create a strong force for change and high level impact. Having already directly improved the lives of thousands of people, The Homeless World Cup is a great project.” The Vodafone Foundation has invested over £100 million in projects since its creation in 2002 concentrating on disaster relief, helping disadvantaged young people via sport and music initiatives and specific projects across Vodafone's 23 local Foundations worldwide. The Homeless World Cup is a world-class international football tournament that has triggered and supports grass roots football programmes in over 60 nations engaging 30,000 players who are homeless all year round. At the 6th Homeless World Cup in Melbourne 1-7 December 2008, 56 nations will be united for a tournament that includes the first women’s cup and a legacy of 30 street soccer programmes rolled out by The Big Issue in Australia. The inaugural Homeless World Cup kicked off in Graz, Austria uniting 18 nations. Since then it has gained great momentum in Gothenburg, Sweden (2004), Edinburgh, Scotland (2005), Cape Town, South Africa (2006) and Copenhagen, Denmark (2007). It will visit Milan in 2009.Founded by world-leading social entrepreneur Mel Young, the Homeless World Cup is supported by UEFA, Nike, The Vodafone Foundation, Global Ambassador Eric Cantona and international footballers Didier Drogba and Rio Ferdinand. Atletico Madrid want to sign a player, before he's born!      04.10.2008 :18 year old, the daughter of Diego Maradona Gianinna is pregnant by the Argentinian 19 year old Football star Sergio Aguero, and they have just announced that the child will be a boy and it has been decided that the birth will be in Madrid, next February.Sergieo is the youngest player ever to have played an Argentine First Division clash, but the previous record set by none other than Diego Maradona who will be his father in law. This has led to much speculation, that if genetics are anything to go by, he will be a superstar of the future, and the President of Atletico Madrid, Enrique Cerezo said "If the Gianinna & Kun (aguero) have a son, then he will be the youngest player in history Atletico Madrid" . He will be our youngest signing ever!" The future child will be called Leo,as per the name of Aguero's good friend and an another Argentinian superstar Messi.He is being named after Aguero's father and grandfather, who were both called Leonel. I-LEAGUE (UPTO ROUND 2 )::: 30th Sept -4th Oct 2008 Matches played: 11 Won by home team: 3 Draws: 3 Won by away team: 5 Goals scored: 26 Goals by home team:13 Goals by away team:13 Most frequent result 1-1 :: 2 times 1-2 :: 2 times 0-1 :: 2 times 3-0 :: 1 times 1-3 :: 1 times 0-0 :: 1 times 2-1 :: 1 times 3-1 :: 1 times Best offense (% of Goals for/match) Churchill Brothers :: 2.00 Sporting Goa ::2.00 Chirag United :: 2.00 Mumbai F.C ::1.50 East Bengal :: 1.50 Air-India ::1.00 JCT ::1.00 Dempo S.C :: 1.00 Mahindra Utd :: 1.00 Mohun Bagan :: 1.00 Mohammedan :: 0.50 Vasco S.C :: 0.00 Best diffense (% of Goals for/match) Sporting Goa 0.00 JCT 0.50 Mumbai F.C :: 0.50 Vasco S.C :: 0.50 Churchill Brothers :: 1.00 Air-India :: 1.00 East Bengal :: 1.00 Mohun Bagan :: 1.50 Mohammedan S.C:: 2.00 Chirag United :: 2.00 Dempo S.C :: 2.00 Mahindra Utd :: 2.50 Chirag beat Durand Winner Mahindra United      SEE CURRENT LEAGUE TABLE 04.10.2008 :Newly promoted Chirag United of Kolkata outclassed Durand Cup champions Mahindra United 3 - 1 in the ONGC I-League football match at the Cooperage ground today.they lost just opposite score 1 - 3 against City rival East Bengal in their first match in the opening of I-League at Barasat. In the 12th minutes of first half Mahindra netted first which scored with a header by Sushil Kumar Singh from a close range measured cross from the right flank sent by Steven Dias. Chirag United came back quickly into the match in the 2nd half by scoring 3 goals against 2005-06 League winners from Mumbai.This is the 2nd defeat of Mumbai Giant who had lost 1- 2 to Churchill Brothers of Goa in their opening I-League clash. Muritala Ali of Chirag equalized in the 2nd half 46th minutes who got the ball from Gouranga Dutta and simply lofted the ball over an advancing Mahindra custodian Subashish Roy Chowdhury . Chirag got their second goal in the 53rd minute when speedy Gouranga Dutta came charging in to connect with a sliding motion a goalmouth centre from the left by Snehasish Chakraborty. After ten minutes Mahindra Could have to equalize through Steven Dias whose free-kick hit the post. Three minutes before ending the match Chirag's substitute Hardeep Saini scored with an angular shot off a measured pass from Muritala Ali. Hardeep Singh Saini of Chirag United has been awarded Man of the Match.Mahindra coach Derrick Pereira blamed his midfield for the stunning reverse against Chirag United. Mahindra United: 1-Subhasish Roy Chowdhury, 16-Sunil Kumar, 2-N.P. Pradeep; 17-Sukhwinder Singh, 14- Ravanan, 4-K.N.Ajayan, 8-Paresh Shivalkar, 23-Steven Dias, 29-Djidjia Douhou,28-Sushil Singh, 10-Chidi Edeh Chirag United: ? Ravikant Singh, 2-Louis, 15-Dulal Biswas, 6-R Dhanarajan (7-Hardip Singh Saini), 5-Subhashish Roy Chowdhury, 14-Basudeb Mondal,30-Gouranga Dutta,17-Bidemi Daniel,11-Snehasish Chakraborty, 25-Shankar Oraon,32-Muritala Ali, Sporting Goa stun Mohammedan Sporting in I-League      SEE CURRENT LEAGUE TABLE 04.10.2008 : :Sporting Clube de Goa defeated Mohammedan Sporting Of Kolkata 3 - 0 in their 2nd round match of the ONGC 2nd I-League today at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium,Goa. Sabbir Ali's three foreigners, Adebayo Adewusi ,Mike Okoro and Theodore Sunday was totally flopped to open goal mouth of the Goan Club. After a goalless first half, Sporting Goa scored all their goals in 2nd half through Elija Junior(62nd, 76th) and Micky Fernandes (75th). Sporing could have to lead in the first 19 minutes, if Man of the Match Elija's powerful shot was not saved by Mohammedan keeper Naseem Akhtar . Sporting took the lead in the 62nd minute, when Joseph Pereira played a short pass to Wilton Gomes from a flag kick, who float the ball into the box and Elija placed the ball into the net by a header. The 2nd goal came in the 75th minute when Micky Fernandes ran solo from the middle and puzzled Mohammedan defenders before placing the ball into the net. A minute later, Junior made full three points for Sporting Clube, when he chipped the ball over onrushing Mohammedan Custodian Naseem Akhtar and killed all hopes Mohammedan Sporting. Mohammedan S.C:Naseem Akhtar, Rajib Ghosh, Sheikh Azim, Prem Kumar, Bijoy Das, Jyothi Kumar, Adebayo Adewusi (Roque Barreto),Sovan Chakraborty (Lalchhuan Awma), Farooq Hyder (Subhas Mondal),Mike Okoro, Theo Sporting Goa:Felix D'Souza,Wilton Gomes ,Chinta Chandrashekhar,Philip Gomes,Samananda Singh,Harmanjot Khabra(Bisheshwor Singh),Joseph Pereira, Micky Fernandes,Luciano Sabrosa,Joychandra Singh(Anthony D'Souza),Elijah Junior (Cavin Lobo) TFA CADET SAVES KARIM FROM BLUSHES      03.10.2008 : Rahul Sengupta:The reigning Kolkata League Champions are not finding it easy in the I League. After losing the opening match against newly promoted side Mumbai Fc the green and maroon mariners had their task cut out to win the match for saving their pride. The first few minutes saw both the team playing an unruly football just a smart move to get along with the treacherous turf. As early as the 5th minute itself Mohun Bagan got few good chances to take the early lead perhaps an ardent effort to avoid the mistakes committed in their previous outing against Mumbai FC. Jose Barreto, Ishfaq Ahmed and P C Lalwampuia combined well but the Air defence stood on firm ground led by the foreigner Udiofia. Air India goalkeeper Arup Debnath showed his potential by parrying away two excellent shots on goal taken by the mighty Brazilian in the Mariner’s squad. Mohun Bagan’s stand in skipper Lalkamal Bowmick saw an early yellow card for his foolishness on the pitch, this act revealed how much Mohun Bagan players were missing their Skipper Bhaichung Bhutia. In the dying moments of the first half the Air Men took the lead as Striker Soccor Vellho scored from a well-initiated free kick by Napolean Singh. Karim played all his cards after replacing Malswantulunga in place of Lalkamal Bhowmick. A last dith effort by the Moroccan coach was made when brought in rookie striker Branco Vincent Cardozo in the 70th minute. Minutes had past since he stepped onto the pitch that he scored his first ever goal for Mohun Bagan in the I league thus saving Karim Bencharifa from real time blushes. Noteworthy mention must be made of Air India defenders Uttam Singh, Napolean Singh and Arup Debnath who put up a brave show to steal away a single yet important point from the away fixture. Mohun Bagan should take some positives from the match as they took away their first points of the season. Whereas Air India coach will have a pleasure trip back home as he is satisfied with 2 points from two tough Away matches. Mohun Bagan now have to travel to Goa as they face Sporting club in their next match in search for their first victory of the campaign. Meanwhile Air India team will fly back home to welcome East Bengal next week. mohunbagan-airindia-2008.jpg Score: Mohun Bagan: 1 (Branco Cardozo [12] 72nd) Air India 1 (Soccor Velho [10] 43rd) Yellow Cards: Lalkamal Bhowmick (Mohun Bagan) M.Mohun Bagan: 31-Shilton Pal; 17-Rahul Kumar, 3-N.S.Manju, 14-Peter Odafe, 27-N.. Mohanraj; 20-Rakesh Masih, 7-Lal Kamal Bhowmick (19-Tulunga), 23-Lalramluaha (12-Branco Cardozo), 11-Ishfaq Ahmed, 10- Barreto, 9- Lalam Puia. Air india ::24-Arup Debnath; 6-Uttam Singh, 29-Chukwuma Udofia, 4-Syed Farid, 2- Napoleon Singh, 3-Ravinder Singh, 28-Michael Tayo, 22-Surojit Roy (18-Vijith Shetty), 10-Soccor Velho (12-Subhash Singh), 23-Kailash Patil (11-Hringsolal Thomte), 25-Emmanuel Ovieghara Vasco - JCT match ended goalless      02.10.2008 : Rahul Sengupta:Vasco F.C, the Newly promoted Team from 2nd Divn to 1st Divn I - League ended their match a goalless draw against JCT, who defeated 3 times winner Dempo S.C in their first match. Today Vasco Goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani played well and blocked three positive goal scoring chances of JCT.In the 8th minutes of first half JCT striker Eduardo Escober got the first chance to get a goal and again lost an another opportunity to score in the 20th minutes vut Vasco custodia tipped the ball over the bar off a free kick from Eduardo. Vasco, who lost to sporting Goa in their opening match, did not create much impact through the match with their three foreigners . JCT defender Julius Akpele was declared the man of the match today. Vasco F.C: 20-Laxmikant Kattimani; 24-Fulganco Cardozo; 31-Yorkin Nazarov, 19-Menino Fernandes,32-Sherzod Nazarov, 18-Elvino Fernandes, 5-Covan Lawrence, 28-Lalnun Puia (9-Abhishek Yadav),17-Agnelo D'Souza (27-Selrino Gonsalves, 23-Sujay Mondal), ; 29-Ravshan Teshabaev, 15-Agnelo Colaco JCT F.C: 1-Karanjit Singh; 13-Baldeep Singh Sr, 7-Jagpreet Singh, 17-Amandeep Singh (8-Jaswinder Singh), 4-Julius Akpele, 3-Anwar Ali, 2-Jaspal Singh; 6-Baljit Singh Sahni; 9-Balwant Singh (22-Pawan Kumar),24-Gurwinder Singh (28-Shivraj Singh), 10-Eduardo Escobar. GO TO MAIN PAGE