Men vs. Women Football Match draws punishment in Iran

30.01.2009 : ::An Iranian famous football club has suspended three officials for allowing the club's female team and its youth male squad to play against one another — the first such match since the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran. Esteghlal, known as "The Blues" for its team colours,known as "The Reds" are one of the top two Football teams of Iran.According to a report posted on the club's website , disciplinary committee of the Club has suspended Technical Manager Mohammad Khorramgah for a year, Saeedeh Pournader, head coach of the female team also got a year's suspension. Mostafa Ardestani, head coach of the youth team, got a six-month suspension. It was the first time in the 30 years history of Iran's Islamic establishment that men and women played football together. Iran's strict Islamic rules ban any physical contact between unrelated men and women.Football is popular among Iranian women but religious regulations force female teams to play in closed spaces to avoid male spectators. To watch Women's Football match by Men are strictly prohibited in Iran . Iranian media reported the match finished with a score of 7 - 0 in favour of the male team at Esteghlal's Marghoubkar stadium in South Iran on 20th Jan. It was reported that, the two teams came into contact because their training sessions overlapped. As per Vatan-e-Emrooz daily newspaper of Iran, Video clips of the match was recorded on cell phones as evidence against the suspended officials who initially denied the game was held.

"I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT SUNIL WILL PLAY IN COCA COLA CHAMPIONSHIP NEXT SEASON " Yogesh Joshee

29.01.2009 : Rahul Sengupta ::After breaking the news of East Bengal and India Star Sunil Chhetri's end of stint with Coventry City, Rahul Sengupta of www.kolkatafootball.com spoke with Sunil's agent Yogesh Joshee. FACE 2 FACE KFC: We heard Coventry City is not interested in Sunil? Can you please tell us exactly what happened today? Yogesh: Actually Sunil trained for Coventry just for 3 days Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. He was impressive, but he was not exactly up to mark to please Coventry City's Manager, Chris Coleman and didn't fit into the system.. KFC: Will he join for training in some other clubs? Yogesh:East Bengal official's wants Sunil Chhetri to be back on Saturday to take part in their away match against Mumbai F.C. of I-league. There are few other clubs who have offered him a trial but as the January transfer window is closed, so there is no point in wasting time in any other clubs for a trial. KFC: Does that really mean the end of UK adventure of Sunil Chhetri? Yogesh: Of course not. We will have a meeting with Coventry manager tomorrow and then we will decide on his course of action. KFC: What were the views about him in UK? Yogesh: I saw him training for the last 3 days, he was fanstactic. There are positive views about him. Mr. Coleman believes that he will certainly be able to play in the English Championship league. KFC:As Chhetri's agent, what would be your next step? Yogesh: After tomorrow's meeting with Coventry officials, We will look for other options that are open for him in UK. I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT SUNIL WILL PLAY IN COCA COLA CHAMPIONSHIP NEXT SEASON." KFC: Thank You Mr. Joshee ? Yogesh: Welcome

Sunil Chhetri's UK adventure comes to an end.

29.01.2009 : Rahul Sengupta :: It's been only four days since Sunil Chhetri joined training with the Covetry City FC and after the end of today's practise session at the Sky Blue Lodge, Coventry Coaching staff made it clear that they have no intentions to sign the AFC Challenge cup winning hattrick-hero of the Indian Football team. Fresh from the 2-0 defeat at the hands of Cardiff City, Sky Blues Manager Chris Coleman told local media channels that Suni Chhetri is not the ideal player they are looking for at this point in time. Chris Coleman also revealed that though Chhetri trained with his boys for the past few days but he failed to impress the coaching staff which prompted them to terminate their efforts in getting the Indian Striker at the Ricoh Arena. Sunil Chhetri still has few more days left in his trial stint at the Coventry City FC but he wants to appear for trials for some other clubs who have shown interest in him. Chris Coleman also mentioned that he is quite aware of the popularity of Sunil Chherti in India and also he is aware of the fact that due to Chhetri, Coventry too came in the limelight in the subcontinent but it could hardly help the cause of Sunil Chhetri. With this news, Sunil Chhetri can now look for playing in the MLS with Agent Eddie Rock already showing interest in signing him. Apart from that, rumours suggest that Wolverhamton Wanderers are also offering a trial for Chhetri but what happens next can only be known once we get in touch with his current agent Mr. Yogesh Joshee in a short while from now. Stay tuned to www.kolkatafootball.com for latest updates from Coventry.

Sunil Chhetri spectator as Sky Blues take on Cardiff

28.01.2009 : Rahul Sengupta ::After having attended three practice sessions at Coventry City FC under Manager Chris Coleman at the SKy Blue Lodge. The current East Bengal striker had a rest day today as Coventry City team gears up to take on FA CUP finalists Cardiff City. Sunil Chhetri will play the part of a spectator today as his team plays at the Richoh Arena. A win at their home can take them up to 12th spot in the Coca Cola Championships. Meanwhile Manager Chris Coleman mentioned that he wants Sunil to stay for yet another week to complete the trial procedure and exclaimed that both of them are getting to know each other well, apart from that Coventry already has 5 strikers in their squad. So it is difficult to say wehter he can make the final cut or not. Sunil Chhetri will again start training with the first team from thursday at the SKy Blue lodge. FACE 2 FACE with Sunil Chhetri

Samuel returns to Argentina Squad for France Friendly

27.01.2009 ::For the friendly match against France France on February 11 in Marseille., the Inter defender is back in the 20 Squad of Argentina after a long absence. During his visit to Europe, Argentina Boss Diego Maradona finally decided to include Walter Samuel into the national team after a two-year absence.Maradona has already informed that Juan Roman Riquelme and Juan Sebastian Veron will meet France later. The Argentina squad against France Friendly: Goalkeepers: Juan Pablo Carrizo (Lazio) and Sergio Romero (AZ Alkmaar). Defenders: Javier Zanetti (Inter), Martin Demichelis (Bayern Munich), Gabriel Heinze (Real Madrid), Daniel Diaz (Getafe), Nicolas Burdisso (Inter) and Walter Samuel (Inter). Midfielders: Javier Mascherano (Liverpool), Fernando Gago (Real Madrid), Maximiliano Rodriguez (Atletico Madrid), Jonas Gutierrez (Newcastle), Luis Gonzalez (Porto) and Angel Di Maria (Benfica) Forwards : Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Sergio Aguero (Atletico de Madrid), Carlos Tevez (Manchester United), Ezequiel Lavezzi (Napoli), Lisandro Lopez (Porto) and German Denis (Napoli).

SUNIL CHHETRI FAILS TO FIRE IN THE 1ST DAY OF TRIALS.

27.01.2009 : Rahul Sengupta: :On the first day of trials at the Coventry City FC practice ground, India's International striker Sunil Chhetri looked a bit off color. The trial started at around 8 am GMT at the Ricoh Arena (Coventry City F.C Home Ground) and lasted for one and a half hours during which Sunil Chhetri played a 8V8 match with the reserves and three four other new players who had also traveled here for the trials. Sunil Chhetri looks sharp in the opening few minutes of the practice match when he combined well with the midfielders amongst them three players were also on trial for the Sky Blues. After dazzling for the first few minutes and taking as many as three cracks on goal, the Delhi born 25 years old Kolkata based East Bengal Club Footballer later faded away and was lacking the touch, which he is mostly known for. It could be possible that Sunil was Jet Lagged after traveling for ten and a half hours to reach U.K. Sunil still has a weeklong time to impress the coaching staff at the Coventry City FC. One of the Coaching staff exclaimed that he had the opportunity to watch Sunil’s compatriot Baichung Bhutia feature for a similar trial for Coventry’s across the street rival at Aston Villa almost a decade ago. Sunil Chhetri again resumes training tomorrow and we can only hope that his performance can only get better. Maharashtra DSO boys U-14 team lift third place 26.01.2009 : : :The Maharashtra U-14 boys team lifted the third place trophy at the 54th National School Games football tournament 2008-09. Twenty two state teams participated at this tournament organised by School Game Federation of India (SGFI) hosted by the Govt of Maharashtra, Dept of Sports & Youth Welfare. PIFA Director Mr Nirvan Shah (UEFA licensed coach) after his success with the Maharashtra U-14 girl’s team at the AIFF football festival in Chennai was appointed Chief Coach for the Maharashtra team as well as the National selector for the India school team. The state team beat HP (4-0), drew Delhi (3-3), in the quarter finals beat West Bengal (1-0), in the semi finals lost to Goa (0-2), in the third place game beat Jharkhand (4-2) on penalties. The tournament was won by Uttrakhand, they beat Goa in the finals on penalties. The following players played for Maharashtra - Utkarsh Patil (GK), Khaleel Sheikh (GK), Ajinkya Tund (GK), Vishwas Padvi (D), Rahul Roy (D), Faizan Mohammad (D), Talah Khan (D), Ranjeet Vichare (D), Arafat Ali (M), Siddharth Naik (M), Hussain Mirza (M), Suraj Kadam (M), Omkar Jadhav (M), Feroz Jilla (M), Sunny Thakur (F), Elton Quadros (F), Garric Mathias (F), Rushabh Dhere (F). This is the first time that Maharashtra team has finished in the top three of these tournaments. Spanish Giant F.C Barcelona named best club of the last 18 years 24.01.2009 : : :The International Federation of Football History & Statistics on Friday named Spanish Giant F.C.Barcelona as the best club side of the past 18 years in the World. The IFFHS compiled the statistics from 1991, using the position each team finishes in the annual world rankings as a scoring system, and the Catalan side is 79 points clear of second place Manchester United. Behind Manchester United come two Italian giants in the form of Juventus and AC Milan, and then down in fifth is Real Madrid. Barcelona have come out on top with 757 points, followed by Manchester United on 678, but the rest of the top four is all-Italian.Juventus come in third with 621 points, just pipping Milan on 611. Both are in front of the Real Madrid ‘Galacticos’, who have 605 points. There are another four Italian sides in the top 20, as Inter come in sixth, with Roma in 14th, Parma – relegated to Serie B last season – in 16th position and Lazio 20th Official first 20 IFFHS Rankings: 1. FC Barcelona (Spain) 757 Point 2. Manchester United (England) 678 Point 3. Juventus FC (Italy) 621 Point 4. AC Milan (Italy) 611 Point 5. Real Madrid (Spain) 605 Point 6. Inter Milan (Italy) 567 Point 7. Bayern Munich (Germany) 563 Point 8. Arsenal (England) 550Point 9. River Plate (Argentina) 503 Point 10. Chelsea (England) 442 Point 11. Liverpool (England) 435 Point 12. FC Porto (portugal) 425 Point 13. Boca Juniors (Argentina) 420 Point 14. AS Roma (Italy) 405 Point 15. Ajax Amsterdam (Holland) 400 Point 16. Parma (Italy) 373 Point 17. Sao Paulo (Brazil) 367 Point 17. Valencia (Spain) 367 Point 19. Glasgow Rangers (Scoland) 364 Point 20. SS Lazio (Italy) 342 Point East Bengal made a goalless draw against Chirag 24.01.2009 : : : KEB:Subrata,Nirmal,Nabi,Mehraj,Soumik,Mehtab,Sanju,Renedi, Jayanta,Yakubu,Sunil, CU:Somnath,Luis,Hardeep,Goutam,Arnab,Daniel,Sankar,Subhas (Sasthi),Gouranga,Denson,Narugopal 90'+3' : Match End.. East Bengal unable to score goals against Chirag in the 2nd leg and lost valuable 2 points. 92':Alvito's corner and yakubu's header just out side the bar 90': Yakubu's shot touched the barpost from a corner.. Referee added 3 minutes..East bengal is trying to score but Chiag's tight defence played well 82': Still the result is goal less. In the First leg at Barasat East Bengal won the match against Chirag.. 79': Nabi's left footed shot well saved by Chirag keeper.. Addo comes in the field and Mehtaab out.. 70' : Shankar Oraw of Chirag beat two defenders of EB but unable score in one-in -one situation in penalty box. 65': Right Back Nirnal chettri out Musa in for East Bengal and Denson out Malswama Hmar in for Chirag United 61': EB Striker Suni Chettri's shot well saved by Chirag custodian Somnath Khara 57': East Bengal lost a good chance.. Mehtab's shot gone wide.. 55': still no score.. Chirag get corner ..Subrata collect the ball.. no damage done.. 48': Renedi Singh out and Alvito in the action of EB Midfield . Two good attack done by Rahim Nabi and Yakubu but failed to score. Sunil Chettri missed an oppertunity t o score after getting al ball from Yakubu.. 45': East Bengal is beeter in 60% ball possession but not to make a good movement in the Chirag penalty box.Now it's Half Time and still the score line is goal less. 42': Easiest chance missed by Shankar Oraw of Chirag,Midfielder Hardeep, who pused the ball to Shankar who crossed the ball to EB penalty area,EB Defender Nirmal failed to trap the ball but unmarked Shankar push the ball out side the goal post.. 38': Chirag Defence cleared the Yakubu-Nabi attack from right side. 35': Sanju Prodhan collects a ball from yakubu but his shot missed the ratget. 33':Chirag's Denson Devdas missed a golden oppertunity to score when he got a ball from Gouranga Dutta 30': Asusual playing by two teams ,EB's Nabi centered a ball but cleared by Chirag defence. 25': Chirag playing well and try to put pressure through Gouranga and Sahkar oraw 14':East Bengal put pressure to Chirag Defence through sanju and sunil but still goalless 12': Gouranga missed a good oppertunity. 5':Chirag's Hardeep took a shot but ball went away FIFA WORLD CUP - 2010 :: VOLUNTEER PROGRAMMES 24.01.2009 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya ::Just a year and a half to go for the FIFA World Cup in South Africa but the madness has already started with the FIFA CONFEDERATIONS CUP, 2009 coming up this June. FIFA, being the governing body for World football, has always tried to work for the development of football. They have tried to create awareness among the masses through the most beautiful game on planet Earth. May 15th, 2004, will always be remembered as a very important date for South Africa. On this very day they were awarded the hosting rights for the FIFA WORLD CUP, 2010. A country that was once banned from the world of sports due to "apartheid" has come a long way. The period of transition is remarkable for the country and also for the continent that has been a hotbed for revolution, injustice and communal violence. In November, 2007 the South African World Cup Organising Committee unveiled their offcial slogan: "Ke Nako-Celebrate Africa’s Humanity”. Ke Nako means “It’s time”.Yes indeed it was time for Africa to prove its credentials and with South Africa as the host for the upcoming World Cup is a great achievement for the continent and its football federation. FIFA is doing their level best so that the World Cup in South Africa is played in the best of spirits and with a high level of energy and its Volunteer Programme is one exciting part about the football World Cup. It provides the football fanatics to work as a volunteer for the numero uno tournament of world football. It has been going on for a while but with the World Cup in South Africa coming up it’s a lifetime opportunity for football fans.The South African local organizing committee (LOC) has announced that around 5000 volunteers will be working in this magnanimous event. Candidates can participate from all over the world. FIFA World Cup will be preceded by the Confederations Cup, 2009 and the LOC have received 20,000 application from all over the world for the latter event that will be held between 14-28th June 2009. Though the registrations have been closed for the Confederations Cup, we can all look forward to the World Cup that will get underway in one and a half years. There will be two kinds of Volunteers-Specialist and General Volunteers. Specialist Volunteers are volunteers with expert knowledge and particular skills, e.g. language skills, information technology and media skills. Meanwhile General Volunteers will similarly fulfil important representative roles for the LOC and host cities in areas such as accreditation, spectator services, transport, information services, drivers, hospitality, logistics and administration. Volunteers must be 18 years old and above to participate in this event. Interested candidates can apply through the official website of FIFA.The registration opens on July, 2009. Once selected from the intial screening via the LOC and intelligence agencies, the candidate will have to go through a interview and robust training to become a volunteer for 2010. The volunteers will be paid a stipend of 100 Rands (South African currency) per day and also not to forget they will be awarded a recognition certificate after the conclusion of the tournament. Photo Exhibition of historical IFA Shield 1911 starts at Kolkata 24-26.01.2008 : ::That was 29th July 1911, for the first time in the history of Indian Football,an Indian team Kolkata based Mohun Bagan ,consisting purely of Bengalees has won the historical IFA shield, defeating the crack teams of three British Regiments amidst the applause of 80,000 of their countrymen.Mohun Bagan made quick progress through the early rounds of the Tournament. they beat St.Xavier's 3 - 0 in the first Round on 10th july 1911,then Rangers 2 - 1 on 14th July and Riffle Brigade 1 - 0 on 19th July. In the Semifinal on 24th July Mohun Bagan and Dum Dum based 1st Middlesex Regiment Match ended 1 - 1 but Mohun Bagan beat them in the 2nd match by 3 - 0 and enter to face in the Final against strong British Team East York Regiment at CFC Ground on 29th July 1911. Ten bare footed native Bengalees created a history defeating the British side by 2 - 1. India's first ever Soccer Study and research Centre Valerian Soccer Foundation (VSF) is observing a Photo Exhibition of Mohun Bagan's Historical IFA Shield win in the year 1911. Very recently Valerian Soccer Foundation has launched their own Soccer Journal "90 Minutes" from Kolkata. Secretary of the VSF Organization Mr. Aritra Chatterjee told to the media that, this Photo Exhibition, Historical Documents etc.will be continue in their Stall at Rabindra Bharati University B.T.Road Campus on & upto 26th January 2009. The occasion is 25th Annual conference of Paschim Banga Itihas Samsad. From 10 AM it will be started at their Stall. Mohun Bagan beat Mumbai F.C 3 - 0 23.01.2009 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya :: 90': Match end .Mohun Bagan beat Mumbai F.C 3 - 0 and Captain Baichung Bhutia has been declared Man of the Match 89': Goal......Lalampuia scoered the 3rd for Mohun Bagan. after getting a ball from Marcos . 82' : Lalampuia in and captain and first goal scorer of Mohun Bagan Baichung out 80': Goal...... Barreto Scored 2nd goal for Mohun Bagan.After getting a pass from in the mid field ,Barreto startes run and fires the ball from the left side of MFC Goalkeeper. 77': Mohun Bagan is leading 1 - 0 .. 73': Baichung Bhutia scored a goal by a splendid flying side volley by collecting a ball from James Sing. 69': Habibur pushed the ball to Baichung and Baichung passed the ball to Isfaq but MFC defence cleared it by a corner.. No damage done from Manju's corner 65': From a counter attack Isfaq Ahmed got the ball but his long center collect by MFC Goalie 63': No damage done form MFC corner .. 55':Isfaq moves from left beat Sanjoy parte ,pushed the ball to barreto takes a 25 yeards punch which was saved by MFC Goalkeeper 47' : Golden oppertunity by MFC, Felix right footer well saved by Sangram 45'+1 : The match ended a goal less and now is lemon break.. 44' :Habibur Rehman attacked form the right side , lifted the ball into the MFC penalty box but cleared by the MFC defenders... 42' Baichung Bhutia crossed a ball to Barreto whose header went out.. 38' MFC getting back into the game... 33' Riston 'sCorner saved by MB keeper Sangram 27' : Habibir has got a chance from right site and his punch went out far from goal post 20' :MB Put pressure from right flank 16' :Good chance got by MB through Odafe but ball cleard by MFC Defence 8' :Deepak blocked a good move of Felix of MFC 6' : Peter Odafe slight insured and out of the field for treatment 3' : Isfaq right footed Centered from left but Baichung's header went out the cross bar Maharashtra win the AIFF U - 13 Football Festival 22.01.2009 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya :: Maharashtra won the AIFF U-13 Football Festival Fair play trophy with a total of 65 points while Goa and Manipur finished second jointly with 60 points each.From 12 - 23rd January AIFF conducted their 2nd editon of this U-13 Festival with 23 State Football Team at Jamshedpur, Jharkhand's Keenan Stadium. In 2005 AIFF started this with 16 Teams at Kalyani West Bengal where host Team was the winner. 7-a-side Football Match, Mixed Group Competition , Skill Competitions and Quiz Competition was held in this tournament to encourage players and to promote the game at the grassroot level and therefore no one was crowned champion in this festival.Only Fair Play Trophy was awarded to the team securing highest points in the festival instead of Winners Trophy. Maharashtra Coach Moloy Sengupta, who is also the Chief Coach of Mumbai based Steadfast Football Academy told us that, in his team, Goalkeeper Joshue Narde, Stopper Kelvin Lobo, Midfielder Hossain and Bollywood couple Archana Puran Singh' and Parmeet Sethi's son Aryamann Setti,who is also the captain of his team are the most promising player in his side and they might be included in the Indian U-13 National team.Yash Chowdhuri,whose father Paresh Chowdhury (Vice President of Reliance Industries) is also a talented player in his team. Maharashtra U - 13 team beat Gujrat, Uttar Pradesh,Tamilnadu but lost to Assam and Jharkhand and made a draw against Goa. The team was placed 3rd in Beat & Score competition,2nd in Control & Shoot of the Ball,2nd in Goal Keeping and 1st in the Cultural Programme.Mr.Sengupta was said to be proud of his boys for his team's recent triumph's. During the Tournament Team India Technical Director Joseph Colin Toal conducted coaches clinic for all the coaches of the participating teams which had two sessions of consisting of theory and practical.AIFF Goal project Director Dr. Shaji Prabhakaran was also present today.He played a very important role by being there since the start of the tournament. US DREAM UP AND RUNNING FOR INDIAN FOOTBALLERS. 22.01.2009 : : Rahul Sengupta :FIFA licensed Chicago based Player’s Agent Eddie Rock can soon be considered as the dream merchant for Indian Footballers. Just before the Indian Football tam was about to leave for Hong Kong to play an Exhibition tie the US Based Agent signed up Star Midfielder Steven Dias for his Agency Libero Sports LLC. Steven Dias’s signing means he will now ply his trade in U.S.A’s Major League Soccer, where top clubs like D.C.United and NY/NJ Metro Stars have already showed interest in getting the vibrant and pacy right sided midfielder. Steven Dias could soon be seen rubbing shoulders against top footballers like David Bekham or London Donovan! It will be a treat for any football fan to see our very own home grown footballer excelling abroad. As a part of his signing Steven Dias is to receive anything above a whopping $100,000 per season. More than money what matters is the Exposue as explained by the Agent himself. Meanwhile Eddie Rock spoke exclusively to Kolkatafootball.com and have mentioned that he has already signed Mohun Bagan’s Lalkamal Bhowmick and East Bengal’s Subrata Paul, who will be looking for a club in European leagues in Denmark or Sweden. Where they can have the possibility to get scouted for top European teams from England, Spain or Italy. Eddie Rock had also approached East Bengal’s pin up boy Sunil Chhetri, but he had turned down his offer as he already has an Agent who has fixed up a trial for the 25 years old Delhi born hero in English Championship Club Coventry City FC. A detailed and exclusive interview of Eddie Rock will be up very soon where he has discussed about 9 more players whom he is willing to sign up and also the he spills the beans about the top clubs which have approached for signing Steven Dias. For the interview stay tuned to www.kolkatafootball.com CHHETRI ALL SET FOR ENGLAND TRIP!

22.01.2009 : : Rahul Sengupta :Star Indian Striker Sunil Chhetri’s dream to play in the European league is just about to come true. As per information received here Sunil Chettri’s agent in England has confirmed that English Championship side Coventry City FC has agreed to give Chettri a week’s trial. East Bengal boss Subhas Bhowmick has granted a leave for Sunil Chettri, as he will leave for England after playing against Chirag united in the 2nd phase opener of the I-league. As per the contract East Bengal have agreed to release Sunil Chettri if he secures a place in the Coventry side. The English Championship side is currently placed 13th in the Coca-Cola Championship league and is managed by Ex Fulham and Real Sociedad Manager Chris Coleman. Sunil Chettri however will be following the footsteps of his idol and strike partner Bhaichung Bhutia who had earlier played for Bury FC in the English tier III league. The team of Kolkatafootball.com wishes Sunil Chettri good luck for his foreign endeavor as would feel proud if he manages to secure a deal at the Coventry City FC. Manchester United to support AIFF-BHARTI Football Academy at Goa 21.01.2009 : :David Gill, chief executive Officer (CEO)of the Champions League winner Manchester United, met All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Priyaranjan Dasmunsi on 13th September 2008 at AIFF house at Delhi to talk regarding various areas of collaboration with the AIFF. The Bharti Airtel -AIFF Football Academy in Goa was their matter of talks as a possible area of collaboration. Before returning to his country Gill then also met the vice-chairman of the Bharti Group, Rajan Bharti Mittal, Hemant Sachdev and other Bharti Group officials. In the first week of January 2008 a 100 crore Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between AIFF and Bharti Airtel for the development of the sport in the country in next 10 years. To emerging telecom business markets in Africa and West Asia Bharti Airtel then announced that they will try to tie-up with EPL Mega Team Manchester United Football Club to support the Academy in India. Today in the first executive committee meeting of AIFF at Delhi the acting president Mr.Praful Patel has assured (us) that there won't be any more roadblocks to the academy. Vice President of AIFF Mr. Subrata Dutta said after the executive committee meeting that,Manchester United have shown interest in providing technical support to the proposed AIFF Football academy which will come up in Goa in association with telecom major Bharti. He also said that the English premier club has assured the federation of its support but the final details of project are yet to be finalised. They will try to make a special Committee in thier next meeting to look after the proposed academy. AIFF has been released 2nd Divn. I-League Groups 21.01.2009 : : In the first Executive Committee meeting of All India football Federation which was held today at Delhi, Mr Praful Patel, President in Charge AIFF announced the the following decisions which were taken : 1. AIFF Calendar for 2009 was approved. 2. U-21 National Football Tournament will now commence from April 15. 3. Senior Women Nationals will be held in the last week of February. 4. 63rd Santosh Trophy will be held in the first week of May at Tamil Nadu. 5.IFA Shield and Durand cup will be held in the month of September and December respectively. 2nd Division National Football League: Will kick off in the last week of February. Groups & Venues: Group A : Venue : Assam : Teams : ONGC , OIL India ,Camelia George Telegraph & Bengal Mumbai FC & Lajong FC Group B : Venue : Gurgaon : Teams : Amity United SC , Pune FC ,New Delhi Heroes ,Simla Youngs & SESA Football Academy Group C : Venue : Kerala : Teams : Salgaocar SC ,Viva Kerala SC , Happy Entertainment ,Malabar United FC , Chandni FC & Titanium. The two top teams from each group will qualify for the Final Round. The Dates and Venues for the final round will be decided later on. 4 Teams from the 2nd Division I-League to be promoted provided they meet all the I League requirements. Manchester United approached Sahara India for Sponsoring! 20.01.2009 :Abhishek Bhattacharyya :English Premier Mega Club Manchester United, the world's biggest football club with more than 300 millions fans throughout the globe, has reportedly approached the Indian Company Subrata Roy's Sahara group for a sponsorship deal.Sahara India’s head of corporate communications Abhijet Sarckar confirmed to some media that they had received the proposal, but refused to give details. It has been reported that Manchester United's commercial director Richard Arnold has sent a proposal letter to Sahara group for sponsoring club T-shirt with Company logo and name. This is the first time that any English football club has looked to an Indian firm for sponsorship their team's logo likes of AIG, Vodafone and Sharp who have done so earlier. Currently, American International Group (AIG) has a 4 years contract for sponsoring Manchester United's Team shirts for £56.5 million (about Rs 415 crore Indian Rupees). If the sponsorship activity comes true in near future then football fans of India may see the Mega English Premier team to play a few matches at Kolkata or Barasat Stadium because Sahara has a five years deal with Indian Football Association(IFA) for sponsoring their Football League Named "SAHARA CFL". Bayern defeated East Bengal again in the 2nd practice 19.01.2009 :Abhishek Bhattacharyya :City Giant and I-League Team Kingfisher East Bengal again lost to FC Bayern Munich today in their 2nd practice match held at East Bengal Ground. After defeating their first match 0 - 1 at Barasat Stadium on 17th East Bengal lost today by a margin of 1 - 5 . In the half time Bayern was leading 4 - 0. Bayern's Deniz Yilmaz scored a hattrick, who was also the only scorer of last match at Barasat for FC Bayern and Thomas Mueller and Marco Stier scored the other goals while Sunil Chhetri reduced the margin for East Bengal in the second half. Today's match was played for 45 minutes each half. Like Barasat Stadium KF East Bengal Felicitated German Legendary Gerd Mueller in the lemon break of the match.He was presented a flower bouquet, memento , red & gold scarf and a East Bengal Team jersey by the high officials of Club . The German legend praised the playing style of East Bengal u- 19 Nirmal Chettri. Speaking at the Calcutta Sports Journalists Club, Mueller said one of the best moments of his life is ever best Bundesliga player which he got ahead of players like Franz Beckenbauer Result:: East Bengal   1 - 5   Bayern Munich II BM : (Deniz Yilmaz - 4', 27', 42',Thomas Mueller 29', Marco Stier 69') KEB : (Sunil Chettri 52') East Bengal : Subrata Paul, Sayyed Rahim Nabi, Mehrajuddin Wadoo, Suley Musah (Mehtab Hossain), Saheb Ali (Ashim Biswas), Soumik Dey, Jayanta Sen, Praveen Kumar (Alvito D'Cunha), Nirmal Chhetri, Sanju Pradhan, Sunil Chhetri. Bayern Munich U-23 :: Riedmueller, Stierle, Niedermeier, Saba, Badstuber, Schuetz, Muller (Hoeferth), Yilmaz, Stier, Bopp, Schurf. Bayern Munich junior defeated East Bengal in a practice match 17.01.2009 :Abhishek Bhattacharyya :The German Bundesliga Champion Team F.C Bayern Munich U - 23 team defeated Kolkata Giant King Fisher East Bengal 1 - 0 in a practice match at Barasat Stadium today.There were free entry for the Football fans at Barasat Stadium to watch the match. In the 3rd minutes of the match German striker Yilmaz scored for Bayern through low shot from the right flank which went through East Bengal Custodian Avijit Ghosh. The German side played very fast and they would have scored more goals. V.Bopp of German side missed out a good chance of scoring in the first half .The match was scheduled for 35 minutes each half . East Bengal missed out a golden change from a right side movement by Sanju Pradhan who lifted the ball into the German penalty box but Dharamjeet's header went just over the cross bar. Just two minutes before the lemon break the German side could have doubled the score line when Thomas Mueller's shot just went over the bar .They continued with their on slaught.They certainly looked a stronger side than East Bengal in first half . They were playing a more concrete ground passing game as East Bengal were struggling to resists their attack. In the second half Avijit Ghosh saved again a shot of Yilmaz from an error of Bayern goalkeeper Maximilian Riedmueller and defender Nieddermeier .East Bengal could have scored a goal through Goutam Kujur but German Keeper collected the ball from his 2nd attempt. There were no foreign players in East Bengal team list today but East Bengal Coach Subhash Bhowmick changed his 4 players through the match while German side was same like first half. After Match East Bengal coach Subhash Bhowmick told reporters that he wanted to test how his youngsters are technically and physically fit against the reputed German side and he is quite satisfied of his team's performances. In the half time German Legendary Footballer Gerd Mueller was facilitated by North 24 Parganas Zilla Parishad and many cultural and other Organizations.With the Bengali tradition he was presented with Bengali sweets and an Uttario (shawl). He also spent few minutes with a 3 year old Football Fan ELIZA AKHTAR in half time. Eliza came with her father Mamun Akhtar from Barrackpur - 15 KM far from Barasat. German side will be playing it's 2nd Friendly at East Bengal ground on 19th and at Siliguri Kanchenjunga Stadium on 21st January. Bayern Munich II:1-Riedmueller, 3 - Stierle, 4- Niedermeier, 5- Saba, 6- Badstuiber, 13- Schutz, 21- Mueller, 10- Yilmaz, 22- Stier, 17- Bopp, 16- Schurf. KF East Bengal:21-Avijit Ghosh,17- Rahim Nabi,29-Soumik Dey, 7-Jayanta Sen, 32-Goutam Kujur(14-Mumtaz Akhtar), 15- Dharmjit Singh(17-Jibon Singh,9 -Alvito D counha), 14-Mehtab Hossain, 22-Sanju Pradhan, 16- Saheb Ali Gharami, 3-Nirmal Chettri,25- Parveen Kumar(10- Asim Biswas) Coach : Subhash Bhowmick All Bengal School Futsal Tournament 2009 15.01.2009 :Abhishek Bhattacharyya :Futsal is an indoor version of association football. Its other name is 'indoor football'. In Madrid, 1985 all other names the game was called were changed officially and internationally into FUTSAL. Futsal is played between two teams of five players, one of whom is the goalkeeper, and up to seven substitutes per team. Unlike some other forms of indoor football, the game is played on a hard court surface delimited by lines; walls or boards are not used. Futsal is also played with a smaller ball with less bounce than a regulation football. Other forms of indoor football games, which are played by somewhat different rules, exist and may be referred to as indoor football, five-a-side football or indoor soccer. To improve popularity and also spread the passion of indoor Football or Futsal among the young generation Bengal MIDUSTOUCH & M3 GROUP of Kolkata is going to organise a FUTSAL CHAMPIONSHIP" at Netaji Indoor Stadium - Kolkata from 20 - 21st January 2009 The Director of the Organising Committee Mr. Santanu Roy told us that,16 School Football teams would participate in this tournament coming from different Districts of West Bengal. He also told, this 5 - a - side Futsal Tournament would start on 20th January form 10.00 AM sharp and upto Semifinal stage, the duration of the matches would be 30 minutes with each half being of 15 minutes with a 5 minutes rest. but the Final match would be a 20 plus 20 minutes affair alongwith rest. Mr. Roy also confirmed that, the organising committee would abide by the 18 golden rules of Futsal laid down by FIFA. Including Fair Play the total prize money would be Rs. 100000 in Indian Rupees and worth of trophy would be 75000 in Indian Rupees. Mr. Sambhu Seth - Working President and Pradip Singh , Creative Head of the organising committee Midustouch & M3 Group also said that, Former coach of Indian National Football Team and Ex-India International Footballer "Dronacharyya" Syed Naymuddin will inaugurate the Tournament on 20h January. RULES OF FUTSAL THE 16 PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS IN THE TOURNAMENT 1. St. Xaviers School 2.Methodist School, Dankuni, Hooghly 3.Shyambazar A.V.School, Kolkata 4.Sri Ramkrishna Sikshyatayan , Howrah 5.Kodalia Prasannabanga Higher Secondery School. 6.Naktala High School, Kolkata 7. Sailendra Sarkar Vidyalaya, Shyampukur Kolkata 8.Sajina public School, Birbhum 9.Jadavpur Vidyalaya , Kolkata 10. Jadavpur N.K.Paul Adarshya Sikshayatan. 11. Belgachia Monohor Adademy, Kolkata 12. Howrah Ripon School 13. CMO High School, Kolkata 14. Parbotipur Vidyapith,Domjur, Howrah 15. Chowbhaga Higher Secondery School, North 24 PGS. 16. Pailan World School, Kolkata Watch for Fixtures and every match updates form the venue ... stay with us Hong Kong beats Bhangra Boys 14.01.2009 :Abhishek Bhattacharyya :With a goal in the dying minutes of the game Hong Kong defeated India 2-1 in today in Hong Kong stadium.It was a big disappointment for India to lose this friendly encounter against a team who is ranked 10 places below them. India is 142, while Hong Kong is staying with 152 rank in FIFA.Only 1200 spectators were present in the stadium to watch the match. The first half was goalless.India Coach Houghton replaced Mahesh Gawli and Rakesh Masih in place of Deepak Mondal and N.P Pradeep and ten minutes before Abhishek Yadav came in the place of Sunil .The home team broke the deadlock in the 70th minute of the game courtesy midfielder Yiu Chung Au Yeung.India equalized with Bhaichung Bhutia scoring in the 79th minute of the match.The match was decided in the very last minute when defender Ng Wai Chiu found the net. India started with Gouramangi Singh, Anwar Ali, Samir Naik and Deepak Mondal in defence. Climax Lawrence, NP Pradeep, Steven Dias and Anthony Pereira played in the midfield and Sunil Chettri and Captain Baichung Bhutia in striking zone. This was India’s first game after the triumphant AFC Challengers Cup and it is pretty disappointing to end up in the losing side at the very first game of the year. AIFF needs stronger and taller footballers for a better performance :Colin Toll 14.01.2009 : :Addressing in a press confernece to newsmen at JRD Tata Sports complex,Janshedpur, Jharkhand, Mr Colin Joseph Toal (AIFF technical Director) said "AIFF needs tougher, stronger and taller footballers for a better performance in the internationlal football arena".who was here with Dr Shaji Prabhakaran( Director 'Vision India' and in-charge of national u- 13 teams, grassroots and youth) to take part in the 3rd AIFF under-13 football festival commencing from 16th January which is organised by the Tata Steel. In the festival there will be programmes for nurturing the young talents, coaches clinic, skill competition and matches . Appreciating the performance of the Indian team, UK-based Toal said that Indian football team required about 30 - 40 % such players for defence line-up and in the upfront.He said 'In football, we need both power and technique. Japan in now a successful international football power by implementing 30 % tall players must inclution in the J-League. ''India,should also follow them. It is not very difficult to find tall and tough players. He gladly expressed "We have won Nehru cup and AFC cup but lost in the SAF championship in the final,so I think during this period, we are certainly making progress," toll said. Emphasizing the need for more exposure tour , he said the India u- 19 team will be going abroad including Hongkong to play friendly matches before the Asian championship probably held in October. Dr. Shaji Prabhakaran, director vision India of AIFF, said the basic purpose of under-13 football festival is to promote and encourage talented youngsters throughout India.He added, around 24 states will be taking part in the festival but the winner will be judged not on the number of goals the team scored but on the basis of the on field conduct. East Bengal felicitated "Kolkata Sheriff" Santo Mitra 14.01.2009 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya : Ex-East Bengal,Indian International Footballer and ex-Indian National team Coach Santo Mitra ,who is now the Hon'ble Sheriff of the City KOLKATA has been felicitated by his former Club East Bengal today evening. This is the first time in the history of East Bengal club that an ex East Bengal footballer has been honoured as the sheriff of Kolkata by Govt. of West Bengal. Few years ago Indian legendary Footballer "Chuni Goswami" who spent his full career in Kolkata team Mohun Bagan got the same honour. Santo Mitro had a great career where he won the prestigious IFA Shield in the year 1970 by beating PAS Club of Iran under his Captaincy. Currrently he is working as an Editor of bengali Soccer Magazine "Kick-Off" published by the India Football Association from Kolkata. The felicitation program was organized by East Bengal Club in their Tent at Kolkta Maidan, where Club Secretary Mr. Kalyan Majumdar, President Dr. Pranab Das Gupta, Vice President Mr. Nani Das, Dr. Shanti Ranjan Das Gupta, current coach Mr. Subhash Bhowmick, Team Captain M.Suresh and East Bengal Club's brand Ambassador Alvito D’Cunha was present. East Bengal Club General Secretary Mr Kalyan Majumdar honoured Mr. Shanto Mitro with a big size red and gold garland and president Dr. Pranab Dasgupta felicitated Mr. Mitra with a red and gold scarf and handed over a silver memento. East Bengal General Secretary Mr.Kalyan Mazumder told that East Bengal Football team will play two practice matches against German Giant Football team Bayern Munich u- 23 team at Barasat stadium on 17th Jan, and an another match will be playing on 19th Jan at club ground against them. It should be a good practice match of East Bengal before starting of I-League 2nd face from 23rd January.. New AFC Champions League launched 12.01.2009 : :: A bigger, better and richer AFC Champions League was launched here on Friday in a spectacular ceremony amidst fanfare, marking the dawn of a new era of professionalism in Asian football. Attended by FIFA President Joseph Blatter and dignitaries from AFC and Member Associations from across the continent, as well as star players and special invited guests, the 2009 ACL launch showcased a fresh brand identity for Asia’s premier club competition. The ceremony took place at the Toyota Mega Web after a dazzling build-up, which included a fashion show and interaction between the fans and football stars. Japan provided a fitting venue for the launch of the new ACL given the guidance and influence that Japanese football leaders, with Captain Saburo Kawabuchi at the helm, had in creating the new tournament. Kawabuchi, the former Japan Football Association President, was asked by AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam three years ago to lead the Ad Hoc Committee for the AFC Professional League Project. “Asian football needs a strong regional club tournament to grow, and we hope that the new ACL will help Asian clubs strengthen themselves technically and administratively so we can be a force in world football,” said Captain Kawabuchi at the launch. “It has been a long road. Many people have put in a lot of effort and we are delighted that we have come to a stage where we can launch this exciting new project.” The 2009 ACL will feature 32 teams in the group stages instead of the 28 in previous events. Prize money has been increased with US$1.5 million for the winners and US$750,000 for the runners-up. However, strict entry requirements means that only clubs and leagues that are professionally run as commercial entities are eligible to take part in the competition. For this reason, only 10 Member Associations have earned direct entry into the group stages. Clubs from four other countries, in addition to the winners and runners-up of the AFC Cup, must go through the play-offs for two berths in the opening group stage. AFC President Hammam said: “We had to implement tough measures to ensure that the clubs and leagues they represented are truly professional in the way they are run and play football. “This is the only way to build up the credibility of this tournament. At the end of the day, Asian football benefits and we are delighted to see that so many associations and clubs are doing their best to meet our competition criteria. “This is an exciting time in Asian football and we are looking forward to a fantastic competition in 2009.” FIFA President Blatter said he was looking forward to the new AFC Champions League. "Football in Asia continues to develop at great pace, and my memories of Japan and the Korean Republic during the 2002 FIFA World Cup are still very vivid,” said Blatter. “FIFA´s commitment to football development across the continent has been long-standing, and with the new expanded AFC Champions League, I look forward to welcoming the winners next December, for the FIFA Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi.” Source :www.the-afc.com Mohun Bagan in Group 'D' in AFC Cup 2009 12.01.2009 : ::The AFC Cup 2009 group stage draw took place today at AFC House. Twenty-nine teams came out of the pots to be slotted into eight groups of four teams each. Three teams from the playoffs for the AFC Champions League will complete the line-up, making this the first time ever the AFC Cup is being played with a full roster of 32 teams with a Round of 16.Five groups are in the West and three in the East. Defending champions Al Muharraq of Bahrain will have to reckon with the team they lost to in the 2006 final, Jordan’s Al Faisaly, in Group E alongside the in-form Al Majd of Syria, and the playoff (West) loser from among Sharjah of UAE of Dempo SC of India. Syria’s Al Karama, who were the AFC Champions League runners-up in 2006, were placed in Group D with another former ACL side Kuwait SC of Kuwait, and Jordan’s Al Wihdat and Mohun Bagan from India. Mohun Bagan (India) Probable AFC Cup Matches schedule 10th March : Al Karama, Syria (Away)   |   5th May : Al Karama, Syria (Home) 17th March : Al Wihdat, Jordan (Home)  |  19th May : Al Wihdat, Jordan (Away) 07th April   : Kuwait SC,Kuwait (Home)  |  21st April : Kuwait SC (Away) Chonburi F.C (Thailand) Probable AFC Cup Matches schedule Mar 10 :: Chonburi VS Eastern Athletic  |  May 5 :: Eastern Athletic VS Chonburi Mar 17 :: Kedah VS Chonburi  |  May 19 :: Chonburi VS Kedah Apr 07 :: Hanoi ACB VS Chonburi  |  Apr 21 :: Chonburi VS Hanoi ACB Match Schedule Matchday Group Match Day 1: 10.03.2009 || D2: 17.03.2009|| D3: 07.04.2009|| D4: 21.04.2009|| D5: 05.05.2009|| D6: 19.05.2009 Round of 16 West: 26.05.2009 || East: 23.06.2009 Quarter-Final 1st leg: 15.09.2009 || 2nd leg: 30.09.2009 Semi-Final 1st leg: 15.10.2009 || 2nd leg: 21.10.2009 Final 1st leg: 27.10.2009 || 2nd leg: 03.11.2009 THE GROUPINGS West Asia Group A : Al Ahed (Lebanon), Busaiteen (Bahrain), Al Tilal (Yemen), Neftchi (Uzbekistan), Group B : Al Zawra’a (Iraq), Safa (Lebanon), Al Suwaiq (Oman),Al Hilal (Yemen), Group C: Al Arabi (Kuwait), Arbil (Iraq), Al Mabarrah (Lebanon), Al Orouba (Oman) Group D : Al Karama (Syria), Kuwait SC (Kuwait), Al Wihdat (Jordan), Mohun Bagan (India) Group E : Muharraq (Bahrain), Al Majd (Syria), Play-off (25.2.2009 ) – West ( Sharjah - UAE Vs Dempo - India.), Al Faisaly (Jordan) East Asia Group F : South China (Hong Kong), VB (Maldives), Johor (Malaysia), Play-off ( 18.02.2009) – PEA Vs Singapur Armed Force Group G: Hanoi ACB (Vietnam), Eastern Athletic (Hong Kong), Chonburi (Thailand), Kedah (Malaysia) Group H: Valencia (Maldives), Becamex Binh Duong (Vietnam), Home United (Singapore), Play-off – East 1 Round of 16 Group A Winner vs Group D Runner-Up || Group B Winner vs Group C Runner-Up Group C Winner vs Group B Runner-Up|| Group D Winner vs Group E Runner-Up Group E Winner vs Group A Runner-Up|| Group F Winner vs Group H Runner-Up Group G Winner vs Group F Runner-Up|| Group H Winner vs Group G Runner-Up Bayern U-23 Team will play at Siliguri also 11.01.2009 : :: World Famous Ex- German World Cupper Gerd Mueller will be felicitated at Siliguri on 21st January and Bayern u-23 team will be playing an Exhibition match at Siliguri Kanchanjangha Stadium on the day against Mayor XI of Siliguri. 27 member Bayern team will reach Siliguri on 20th January after playing in Kolkata and the coaches of Bayern will train local Coaches in a seminar there.The hon'ble minister of State Mr.Ashok Bhattacharyya who hailed from Siliguri stated this news to the press today. Old Trafford blues for Chelsea 11.01.2009 : Barnick Dutta :: The Red Devils proved again why they are the most successful club in England over the last two decades. Being professional and be able to handle pressure is what makes you a winner. In spite of not having the best start to a season Sir Alex’s team seem to be going about their job nicely. 8 point difference with league leaders Liverpool made today’s clash with the West Londoners a very important game for Man Utd to win. It was supposed to be a difficult task with Chelsea ’s excellent away form this season. As a proof of recent clashes between the two clubs it started off as a cagey affair with the ball being played in the midfield. Allan Webb the referee for the match always had a tight grip on proceedings which was evident from the fact that Frank Lampard got a booking in the 3rd minute for a tackle on Ronaldo. Berbatov had a chance to score after a fluent move by Utd but it fell on his weaker left foot which Cech saved in the end. Utd were disallowed a Ronaldo goal following a cheeky short corner by Rooney but, no one was seen complaining because Vidic scored when Ryan Giggs retook the corner kick. First blood drawn and that too red one. United lead 1-0 at half time. Second half saw Nicolas Anelka joining Didier Drogba upfront. United started off with keeping possession of the ball which they are very adept in doing. A moment of brilliance from Ronaldo enabled the ever energetic Evra to whip in a cross from the left which Rooney complimented by putting it in the net. Carrick got 11mins in the center of the park when he was substituted for Ryan Giggs in central midfield. Ferguson ’s estimate of Giggs seems to be spot on with the kind of shifts the Welshman is putting in. Berbatov rubbed salt to Scolari’s wound in the dying minutes when he duly met Ronaldo’s free kick in the 6yard box giving Cech no chance whatsoever. The champions seemed to be on song today and seemed likely to score a few more but their finesse of last season seems to be missing still much to the dismay of the Old Trafford ‘faithfuls’. Sir Alex has called for more concentration from his players for the remainder of the season if they are to hold on to the crown of England , Europe , World. Rafa Benitez lambasted Ferguson for his way of dealing with match officials, this was the septagenarian’s subtle way of replying ‘IT AIN’T OVER TILL THE FAT LADY SINGS’ Current Table Position after the Derby - 11.01.2009 Position Team Match Points 1 Liverpool 21 46 2 Chelsea 21 42 3 Man Utd 19 41 4 Aston Villa 21 41 5 Arsenal 21 38 6 Everton 21 35 7 Wigan AC 20 31 Man Utd Vs Chelsea Highlights 10.01.2009 ::Captain of Man Utd Rio Ferdinand returns from an injury which he suffered in training at Stoke City. Patrice Evra will also be back after his 4 match ban,. Cristiano Ronaldo will be in the starting lineup after having walked away from his wrecked Ferrari on Thursday.so United have only Owen Hargreaves and Wes Brown missing. But Chelsea captain John Terry back for the trip to Old Trafford after a three-match suspension.But they will be missing two key players in Lampard and Drogba, but this will give Shevchenko an opportunity to show his worth on the pitch and do great things for Chelsea.Michael Ballack is also available after a ban and Jose Bosingwa should play despite picking up a knock, but Florent Malouda (hamstring) misses out. The Probable Two Teams Manchester United : Van der Sar, Kuszczak, Foster, Neville, Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra, O’Shea, Ronaldo, Nani, Fletcher, Carrick, Scholes, Giggs, Park, Berbatov, Rooney, Welbeck, Gibson, Possebon. Chelsea F.C : Peter Cech, Cudicini, Hilario, Bosingwa, Ferreira, Ivanovic, Terry, Alex, Mancienne, A Cole, J Cole, Obi, Lampard, Kalou, Anelka, Drogba, Stoch, Carvalho, Di Santo, Deco, Mineiro, Belletti, Ballack. Ronaldo won the FIFA World Player of the Year award 13..01.2009 :Portugal Midfielder Cristiano Ronaldo won the FIFA World Player of the Year award Monday to complete a sweep of soccer’s top individual honors for 2008. What Ronaldo won in 2008 In 2008 Ronaldo won the followings as a player of Manchester United. 1.Premier League 2.Champions League 3.Community Shield 4.Fifa World Club Cup 5.Football Writers' Player of the Year 6.PFA Player of the Year 7.Golden Boot 8.Ballon d'Or 9.FifPro World Player of the Year 10.Fifa World Player of the Year The Portugal winger scored 42 goals in all competitions last season for English Premier Club Manchester United.No player from the English League has won the award since its inception in 1991 but Ronaldo became the first English Premier League player to win the honor in the award’s 18-year history. Ronaldo received 136 first-place votes and 935 points in a worldwide poll of national team captains and coaches. He was followed by Barcelona and Argentina midfielder Lionel Messi (678) and Liverpool and Spain striker Fernando Torres (203).AC Milan and Brazil midfielder Kaka, the 2007 winner, was fourth (183), followed by Barcelona and Spain midfielder Xavi Hernandez (155), Liverpool and England midfielder Stephen Gerrard (98) and Barcelona and Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o (58).The results announced by Brazilian great Pele. List of FIFA players of the year: 1991_Lothar Matthaeus, Germany 1992_Marco Van Basten, Netherlands 1993_Roberto Baggio, Italy 1994_Romario, Brazil 1995_George Weah, Liberia 1996_Ronaldo, Brazil 1997_Ronaldo, Brazil 1998_Zinedine Zidane, France 1999_Rivaldo, Brazil 2000_Zinedine Zidane, France 2001_Luis Figo, Portugal 2002_Ronaldo, Brazil 2003_Zinedine Zidane, France 2004_Ronaldinho, Brazil 2005_Ronaldinho, Brazil 2006_Fabio Cannavaro, Italy 2007_Kaka, Brazil 2008_Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal On the other hand Brazilian Women Footballer Marta delivered an outstanding performance at the Women's Olympic Football Tournament in Beijing 2008, and equaled the record set by Birgit Prinz of Germany by claiming her 3rd consecutive FIFA Women's World Player title. For the women's vote, Marta won (1,002 points) Germany's Birgit Prinz (328), Brazil's Cristiane (275), Germany's Nadine Angerer (198) and England's Kelly Smith (150). 10.01.2009 ::ESPN STAR Sports, India’s leading sports broadcaster, will present ‘FIFA World Player of the year Gala 2008’, Live from Zurich on your television sets exclusively on 13th January, 2009 at 00:30 hrs. The Awards nominees in the men's category is Kaka (Brazil) Lionel Messi (Argentina) Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) Fernando Torres (Spain) and Xavi (Spain) The Awards nominees in the women's category is Nadine Angerer (Germany) Cristiane (Brazil) Marta (Brazil) Birgit Prinz (Germany) Kelly Smith (England) The above-mentioned nominees were confirmed after a poll in which the coaches and captains of men's and women's national teams from around the world cast their votes on the basis of a list of men's and women's candidates drawn up by FIFA. FIFA Presidential Award and the FIFA Fair Play Award will be presented in the same occasion. Jharkhand win AIFF U-19 National 2008 - 2009 10.01.2009 ::Jharkhand defeat favourite Manipur 2-1 in the final of AIFF U-19 National Football Tournament 45th Dr. B.C. Roy Trophy which started on 24th Dec 2008 at Bhilai, the seond largest city of Chhattisgarh. This is the 4th time win of Jharkhand in this Tournament. Previously they won 2004-2005 (Aizawl),2005 - 2006 (Varanasi), 2006 - 2007 ( Bhilai). One of the spotters Mr. Tanumoy Bose (ace former Indian-International Goalkeeper) appointed by AIFF, told our correspondent over telephone that they have spotted 56 talented footballers most of whom belong to Bengal, Manipur, Jharkhand and Assam. “The boys will report to AIFF before 31st January 2009 and from 2nd to 21st February 32 of them will be short listed on basis of their performance in that practice camp for the Indian National U-19 football team“, Mr. Bose added. The team will fight for the qualifying rounds of AFC U-19 Challenge Cup tentatively to be held in October 2009. In this entire tournament, the goalkeepers were not up to the expectations of this legendary ex-Indian International goalkeeper. But he praised the performances of some players of North East Indian state with the likes of Assam, Manipur, Mizoram etc. After the end of final match, Mr. Rama Raju, MD of Bhilai Steel plant handed over the awards amounting to Rs.25000 anf Rs.15000 to the captains of winning team Jharkhand and Runners up Manipur. VISIT FULL RESULTS OF THE TOURNAMENT Hong kong Team aginst India Friendly on 14th 09.01.2009 :: Hong Kong Team will have a friendly match with India on 14 January, 2009 (Wednesday) at Hong Kong Stadium, team list are as follows: Goalkeeper :HO, Kwok Chuen (South China),ZHANG, Chunhui (South China),LI, Hon Ho (NTR Wofoo Tai Po), YAPP, Hung Fai (Eastern), TSE, Tak Him (Citizen) FAN, Chun Yip (Happy Valley) Defender: POON, Yiu Cheuk (South China), CHAN, Wai Ho (South China), LEE, Chi Ho (South China), AMBASSA GUY, Gerard (Happy Valley), LIU, Quankun (Kitchee), CORDEIRO, Cristiano Preigchadt (Convoy Sun Hei), LEE, Wai Lun (Convoy Sun Hei), WONG, Chin Hung (Tin Shui Wai Pegasus), CHEUNG, Kin Fung (Tin Shui Wai Pegasus), NG, Wai Chiu (Greentown), Midfielder: LI, Haiqiang (South China), AU YEUNG, Yiu Chung (South China), LEUNG, Chun Pong (Happy Valley), LAM, Ka Wai (Kitchee), GAO, Wen (Kitchee), LO, Kwan Yee (Kitchee), LO, Chi Kwan (Convoy Sun Hei), XU, Deshuai (Citizen), LEE, Hong Lim (NTR Wofoo Tai Po), Forward: CHAN, Siu Ki (South China), CHAO, Pengfei (Happy Valley), CHENG, Siu Wai (Tin Shui Wai Pegasus), LEE, Wai Lim (NTR Wofoo Tai Po), AIFF has been reaeased a 20 members India Senior Football for Hong Kong friendly match to be played on 14th Jan 09.India - Hong Kong last match was 2 - 2 drawn on Feb 2006. India 20 Squad : Goalkeepers - Subhashish Roy Choudhury(Mahindra United) , Subrata Paul (East Bengal). Defenders : Rakesh Masih (Mohun Bagan), Anwar Ali ( JCT) ,Deepak Mondal (Mohun Bagan), Gouramangi Singh(Churchill Brothers) , Mahesh Gawli & Samir Naik (Dempo S.C) Midfielders : Baldip Singh (JCT), Mehraj Uddin Wadoo ( East Bengal) ,Anthony Pereira & Clifford Miranda & Climax Lawrence (Dempo S.C) , N P Pradeep (Mahindra United) , Rennedy Singh (East Bengal) Steven Dias (Mahindra United). Forwards : Abhishek Yadav (Mumbai F.C) , Bhaichung Bhutia (Captain - Mohun Bagan) , Sunil Chetri (East Bengal) and Sushil Kumar Singh (Mahindra United) . Bayern Munich U- 23 Team will visit Kolkata next week 08.01.2009 ::It was 27th May 2008, when 1,20,000 witnessed the master stints of the great German Goalkeeper OLIVER KHAN at the Football Capital of India's homeground Salt Lake Stadium. Not only that in continuation to it, West Bengal Govt. alongwith it's part Burdwan Zilla Parishad successfully linked a five years agreement with the Bayern Munich's Football experts to make a modern Football Academy for developing the rural football and spot the talents from their. Keepig in mind, the warmth of reception, the German Giant Club has again been invited to come to the Land of Indian Soccer Kolkata next week. But probably this time it is all about the U-23 Football Team accompanied by German as well as world Football legend Gerd Mueller. It is being reported that, they will come to play 2 or 3 exhibition football Matches here. Kolkata Giant East Bengal, Tata Football Academy may play against the Bayern Team and India Captain Baichung Bhutia leaded Kolkata Police Commissioner XI will also meet the German Giant in the football field. Dempo will fight for Group " B" in AFC Champion's League 2009 Play -off 07.01.2009 :: Dempo S.C,the winner of last year's I-League and runners -up of this year's AIFF Federation Cup who made history by being the first Indian club to reach the semi-finals of the AFC Cup. They lost to Safa of Lebanon in the Semi Final but they were unable to fulfill the AFC criteria for a direct entry into the main tournament of AFC Champions League 2009 . Defending champions Gamba Osaka of Japan placed in Group F with Korea Republic’s FC Seoul, Shandong Luneng of China, and Indonesian side Sri Wijaya. In group B Al Gharafa of Qatar will fight against the winners of the Western Zone qualifying play-off, 5 times UAE League winner Al Sharjah or 3 times winner of Indian National football League Dempo S.C. The AFC Champions League 2009 will feature 32 teams in the group stages instead of the 28 in previous events. Prize money has been increased with US$1.5 million for the winners and US$750,000 for the runners-up. The first round of matches will be played March 10 and 11. PLAY - OFF MATCHE - ( February 25, 2009 ) :: Dempo (India) VS Al Sharjah (UAE ) ,at 7pm, Sharjah, UAE Stadium. Groups And Teams : Group A : Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia), Pakhtakor (Uzbekistan), Al Ahli (UAE), Saba Battery (Iran) Group B : Persepolis (Iran), Shabab (Saudi Arabia), Al Gharafa (Qatar), Dempo (India)/ Sharjah (UAE) Group C : Al Jazira (UAE), Esteghlal (Iran), Al Ittihad (Saudi Arabia), Umm Salal (Qatar) Group D : Bunyodkor (Uzbekistan), Al Shabab (UAE), Foolad Sepahan (Iran), Ettifaq (Saudi Arabia) Group E : Ulsan Hyundai (South Korea), Newcastle Jets (Australia), Beijing Guoan (China), Nagoya Grampus Eight (Japan) Group F : Gamba Osaka (Japan), FC Seoul (South Korea), Sriwijaya (Indonesia), Shandong Luneng (China) Group G : Shanghai Shenhua (China), Kashima Antlers (Japan), Suwon Samsung (South Korea), PSMS Medan (Indonesia)/Armed Forces (Singapore)/PEA (Thailand) Group H : Central Coast Mariners (Australia), Tianjin Teda (China), Kawasaki Frontale (Japan), Pohang Steelers (South Korea) Bhaichung Bhutia Nominated For Arabian Soccer Weekly's Top Asian Award 06.01.2009 :: Chosen by the Asian Football Confederation as the Most Valuable player in the AFC Challenge Cup 2008, Team India Captain "Padmashree" Baichung Bhutia also has awarded AIFF Player of the Year 2008 on 23rd December for 2nd time in his career after 1995. Now Team India as well as India Giant Kolkata Club Mohun Bagan football Team's captain Bhaichung Bhutia has been named as one of the 43 contenders to receive a top Asian Footballer award by a Abu Dhabi soccer weekly, 'Super',which is a dedicated Soccer Magazine started from 2003. The Arabian soccer weekly "Super' is honouring top players in Asia, Africa and among Arabian nations which also carries a prize money of USD 100,000. in each category. Bhaichung Bhutia of India is among 43 candidates in fray for the top footballer of Asia award who is now in practice camp under coaching of Bob Houghton at Goa to prepare for a freindly on 14th January against Hong Kong . The awards are sponsored by crown prince of Abu Dhabi,Sheikh Hazaa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council where Italy's former World Cup Final referee Pierluigi Collina as president of the board of trustees. Ten finalists have been shortlisted in each category. Each of the game's awards has its own system. As per voting system of "Super" to choice the winner, 40% for experts and coaches, 40% for media, 10% for national team captains and 10% for fans. Asia (43 Nominees): Mohammed Nour , Abdoh Otaif, Saad Al-Harthi, Yasser Al-Qahtani, Hussein Abdulghani (Saudi Arabia) Mehdi Mahdavikia, Gholamreza Rezaei, Javad Nekounam, Ali Karami, Ebrahim Sadeghi (Iran) Yuji Nakazawa, Yasuhito Endo, Shunsuke Nakamura, Shinji Kagawa, Marcus Tulio Tanaka (Japan) Noor Sabri, Nashat Akram, Hawar Mulla Mohammed, Mahdi Karim, Younis Mahmoud (Iraq) Jason Culina, Brett Emerton, Tim Cahill, Travis Dodd (Australia) Park Ji-Sung, Kim Do-Heon (South Korea) Hong Yong-Jo, Jong Tae-Se (Korea DPR) Ismail Matar (UAE) Alaa Hebeel (Bahrain) Baichung Bhutia (India) Nantawat Thansopa (Tailand) Ali Al Habsi (Oman) Sebastián Soria (Qatar) Ali Ishfaq (Maldives) Ahmed Ajab (Kuwait) Khurshed Makhmudov (Tajikistan) Bambang Pamungkas (Indonesia) and Vu Nhu Thanh (Vietnam) World Football Transfer :: Will money do the trick? 04.01.2009 ::: Barnick Dutta :: Mark Hughes seems to be the only man who has put on a long face in spite of having a very upbeat transfer kitty even in this economic turmoil.So money alone cannot bring smiles on your face. Losing to Nottingham Forest at home certainly does not boost the morale of “The Citizens” .Touted to be the richest football club their current form is not serving justice to that quarter .Mark Hughes is also running out of options with a curtailed squad owing to injuries, man management problems specially with the likes of ‘Elano,Jo’ & with an underperforming bunch of players. This winter transfer window provides him with the scope of bolstering his squad .Wayne Bridge seems to be a concrete acquisition for the Eastland’s outfit. Rumored to be worth round 12million on a 3&1/2years contract he is set to become the highest paid full back in the world. Speculations are rife regarding Kolo Toure and Roque Santa Cruz making a switch to the so called new found power house of club football . But both the respective managers Arsene Wenger & Sam Allardyce have cancelled out these doubts .Toure after picking up an injury has been in and out of the Arsenal 1st team .The switch could meet up his desire of 1st team action . City have supposedly made a 8milion bid for him if completed would make a prized possession to the ragged defense of Man City. Roque Santa Cruz is said to have fallen out of Sam Allardyce’s favour and is said to be willing to move on from Rovers and rejoin his old manager who brought him to England from Bayern Munich for 3.5million in 2007 . With Robinho injured Cruz can certainly add firepower up front .But with the Lancashire club showing intent to hold on to the Paraguayan it might provide fodder for the speculators .Michael Owen might be another one with his exceptional predatory skills to be a natural choice upfront . With his 120,000 a week contract at St James’s Park coming to an end in summer he might think about moving out of the Tyneside club .But sources gather that the England international is more interested in catching Rafa’s attention and going back to Anfield . Craig Bellamy has also featured on the Eastland outfits transfer radar .But the Hammers seem to be a bit high pitched about the transfer fee .Manchester city have reportedly shown interest in Scott Parker and Matthew Upson .Lukas Podolski has also been linked with a move to the Eastland’s, though reportedly he might opt for AS Roma against City’s riches. Whatever the Arab millionaires had in mind this season they have to slug it out in the mid-table for a top half finish . At least their winter window targets seem to convey that message.About becoming champions we have to wait till the end of the season to see the big money in action. A budget tells us what we can't afford, but it doesn't keep us from buying it. William Feather " But for now we have to see how the former Red Devils star handles his lot and we do wish his New Year turns out to be a pleasant one. Who wants increased unemployment! Maharashtra U-14 girls win 2nd place in AIFF National football festival 03.01.2009 ::Sixteen young talented girls did Maharashtra proud by taking th 2nd place at the just concluded AIFF U-14 girls Football festival held in Chennai from the 23 December 2008 to 1 January 2009. The team was managed by PIFA director Mrs Anjali Shah and coached by Mr Nirvan Shah (UEFA B lic.) The sixteen girls were ::: 1. Kunashni Parikh (GK), 2. Rhea Nongrun (GK), 3. Tavishi Pandey (D), 4. Sakshi Mehta (D), 5. Spenta Daruwala (D), 6. Aayushi Jain (D), 7. Prajkta Sawant (D), 8. Prarthna Mali (D), 9. Leah Poonawala (M), 10. Mahek Mann (M), 11. Natasha Merchant (M), 12. Jacqueline Andrad (M), 13. Natasha Rajpal (F), 14. Marika Menezes (F), 15. Pooja Singam (F), 16. Krisha Parekh (F) The girls after losing their opening match 0-1 against Tamil Nadu the tournament favourites and host. The bottom seeded Maharashtra team came back strongly into the tournament to hold Tripura 1-1 (Natasha M), Delhi 6-0 (Natasha M. 2, Natasha R. 2, Jacqueline A. 1 & Pooja S. 1), Uttar Pradesh 3-1 (Leah P, Tavishi P & Natasha R) and Karnataka 5-0 (Tavishi P. 2, Natasha M, Natasha R & Leah P). Sakshi Mehta & Aayushi Jain topped the quiz contest while the entire team won the cultural program.Maharashtra also did well in the skills – Beat & Score. Marika M., Krisha P. & Rhea N. won 2nd place. This is the first time a team from Maharashtra has achieved such a high ranking in a national tournament. The team looked unbeatable and all other state coaches were full of praises for the teams performance and conduct on and off the field. The team was brought together and trained by coach Nirvan for only 10 days before the tournament. WIFA will be organising a special felicitation ceremony in their honour. The tournament was won by hosts Tamil Nadu Soccer Journal " 90 MINUTES " has been launched 10.01.2009 : Abhishek Bhattacharyya ::Valerian Soccer Foundation launched their bi-lingual Journal “90 Minutes” on different aspects of soccer,today in Jadavpur University’s Anita Banerjee Memorial Hall. Eminent personalities of Indian Football were present in this inaugural ceremony. The journal was inaugurated by Mr.Shanto Mitra,Hon'ble Sheriff of Kolkata & former International Footballer of Indian Team as well as Captain of East Bengal Club. Kshiti Goswami(Minister In charge,PWD & Roads,Govt.of West Bengal),Abani Roy (MP,Rajya Sabha),Subrata Dutta(Vice-President,AIFF & IFA), Dr. Shaji Prabhakaran (Director,Vision India & In- charge National Teams,Grass roots,Youth,All India Football Federation),G.C.Das (Football Historian),Debasish Dutta ( Eminent Sports Journalist),Kalyan Majumdar(General Secretary, East Bengal) and Novy Kapadia,renowned football commentator & journalist was also present in this ocassion. Mr. Syed Md. Masih , Hon'ble Chief Whip,Govt.of W.B & Patron, Valerian Soccer Foundation was said to have presided the ceremony but could’nt be there due to his official work. Also in this occasion mohunbaganclub.com web site members handed over a monetary aid to Sunita Jana and Chinu Jana, Wife and Mother of Late Sanjeeb Jana,the Mohun Bagan fan died in an accident at Salt Lake Stadium during Fed Cup Final Match between the Mariners and Dempo S.C on 21st December. The members of the website handed over an amount of Rs 74,600.00 (37,300.00 each ) to wife and mother of late Sanjeeb Jana. Mohun Bagan coach Karim Bencherifa also donated Rs.10,000 which is included in this amount. Even Valerian Soccer Foundation handed over Rs.5,000 to Sanjib Jana’s family. Kshiti Goswami and Shanto Mitra lauded the efforts of the foundation on launching a Journal which is completely based on football research and development.The journal will also be dealing with the technical aspect of the game..This is also the first bi-lingual journal on football which will be published in English and Bengali. Mr.Shanto Mitra who is also the editor of the football magazine “KICK-OFF” published by IFA(Indian Football Association) urged the foundation to keep up it’s great work towards the contribution of this beautiful game and also said that they must look forward to keep this Journal going on for a longer period of time. They must manage it properly so that the football fans can know the game in a better way. Subrata Dutta and Shaji Prabhakaran spoke about the future of Indian football assuring us that we are gradually reaching our target and our dream of qualifying for the World Cup. But journalist Debashish Dutta didn’t seem to agree with them. Novy Kapadia on the other hand said that we have a glorious past and he thinks that time has come when Indian football is surely going to make a big impact in coming years and our rankings will also improve courtesy the team that we have under Bob Houghton.He seemed to be a very big East Bengal fan as he would love to see the kolkata teams staging a comeback as kolkata is a very passionate football city.He said that Mohun Bagan and East Bengal are two clubs who have a glorious history and they should continue with their magical performances in up-coming ventures. Pele will not be moving to AS Roma 02.01.2009 ::French Soccer Team Le Mans goalkeeper Yohann Pele is high on the radar of several English Premier League clubs.The custodian’s contract expires in summer and it seems that many European clubs are buoyed by that news. English Club Portsmouth are believed to be a front-runner for the 26-year old who has recently broken into the French national squad.Pele could leave Le Mans for free at the end of the season or he could agree a pre-contract in January to join a club outside France. Le Mans are resigned to losing their prize asset and they could decide to cash-in on him during the January transfer window.The news has alerted a number of clubs to Pele's availability, with Portsmouth credited with an interest. Pele, who has broken into the France squad in recent months, is in no rush to make a decision on his future and is weighing up his options with his advisor Habib Sissoko.The 26-year-old is thought to be interested in a move to England as he looks to establish himself as a regular in the France squad. But one thing is confirmed that Pele will not be moving to Roma during the January sales, but a Premier League switch could be on the cards according to FIFA agent Fabrizio Ferrari.Luciano Spalletti is currently looking for a shot-stopper as back-up to Alexandre Doni. Artur is currently the second choice at the Giallorossi, but he is not seen as someone with enough experience to be an alternative to the Brazilian.The hunt for a decent 'keeper is therefore on at Trigoria. However, it's unlikely to be Pele as Ferrari rules out an Italian move. Portuguese Legends Eusebio,Luis Figo may visit Goa 01.01.2009 ::The Goan Football fans couldn’t have expected more than this.It’s been in the news that Goa Football Association are trying to bring Portuguese legends Esuebio,Luis Figo and Head Coach of Portugal national team Carlos Queiroz for their Golden Jubilee Celebration. Eusebio,the former Benfica and Portugal striker have been in Goa before and the GFA(Goa Football Association) are trying to have him again for their 50th year celebration. But this time he will not be alone as he will be accompanied by former Real Madrid & Portugal Captain Luis Figo who is currently playing for Serie A leaders Inter Milan and Carlos Queiroz who has been a former deputy to Sir.Alex Ferguson. The GFA secretary Savio Messias has informed the press:"We have managed to have a word with Figo, Eusebio and Queiroz, all of whom are interested to come to Goa. But we need some solid backing,most importantly financial backing." The GFA have made a contact with Portuguese Olympic Committee, the University of Porto and Mariano Baretto,a top coach in Portugal to convince this imminent Portuguese football personalities to come to Goa. But the main barrier for the association has been the finances.They need some influential sponsor(s) to fund the arrival of these stars in the hot and happening Football zone of India. Historical 114th IFA Shield Tournament wll held July 2009 30.12.2008: :IFA Shield which is one of the oldest tournaments in the world organised by Indian Football Association (IFA-Bengal).The 114th edition of this IFA Shield was scheduled to be held from January 4 -18.But one of the favorite participating Teams of Bengal Mohun Bagan (Winner of Federation Cup 2008) opting out of the tournament citing fatigue, the IFA was forced to reconsider its decision . Therefore in a IFA Shield Sub Committee special meeting which was held today at IFA Office, IFA secretary told to the reporters that, the IFA Shield could not be held in January.So Indian Football Association postponed the IFA Shield till July next year.He told " We don't want to hold IFA Shield if it loses importance. I can't say the exact time of the tournament but it will be held in last week of July 2009, I think that would be a good time to organize the Historical Tournament properly".