U18 Youth League - Bengaluru down rivals Chennaiyin FC 2-1, seal top place to qualify for final round

Bengaluru FC Media

Bengaluru FC came from a goal down to beat neighbors Chennaiyin FC 2-1 in a final round encounter of the Chennai-Karnataka Zone in the Under-18 Youth League at the Bangalore Football Stadium, on Tuesday.

The Blue Colts’ (20 points) sixth win of the campaign also meant they finished three points clear of second placed Ozone FC at the top of the Chennai-Karnataka Zone and qualified for the final round of the competition.

It wasn’t an ideal start for the Blues who conceded early in the first half when Chennayin striker Syed Suhail Pasha controlled an aerial pass and hammered home past Bengaluru custodian Tamal Naskar in the 7^th minute.

Trailing by a goal in the first home game at the Bangalore Football Stadium, the Blue Colts pushed up fiercely in search of the equalizer. The hosts didn’t have to wait long as Biswa Darjee pulled them level in the 24^th minute. The midfielder latched onto a clearance off Ragav Gupta’s cross to smash it into the goal from outside the box.

Bengaluru upped their game in the second half and created more chances than their rivals. Lalnuntluanga hit the post late on in the second half, before substitute Lalrinzuala Lalbiaknia finally completed the comeback in the 88th minute. The striker calmly converted from the spot after Ragav did well to earn a penalty and seal the game 2-1 in favour of the hosts.

BLK Lions crowned champions of U13 Roots Football League Season 6

The last round of league and final play-off matches of the sixth season of the Roots Football League (RFL) were played at the TurfPark, Koramangala yesterday. Teams gave everything they had to win the league. In the Under 13 BLK Lions won 4-2 against PN Rao Rhinos to tie on 15 points with Sharks who won their match against Aarwind Hawks 3-1. BLK Lions emerged champions based on their better head to head record against Sharks. 

In the 6th Season of RFL, around 220 boys and girls from over 80 schools in Bangalore participated. There were 28 teams in 4 age categories - U7, U9, U11, and U13. 32 parent coaches managed the teams.  

In the Under 11 category, Stallions won the league in style by beating RFF Bisons 7-3 in their last match to maintain their position on the top of the league. BLK Lions finished second in the league winning their last match against PN Rao Rhinos 5-3.

In the Under 9 category, Sharks were crowned as champions after beating Drunken Monkey Eagles 3-2 in the second leg and winning on overall aggregate 8-4 over the two play-off legs. 

In the Under 7 category, Sharks beat Arwind Hawks in sudden death, penalty shootout as the two teams were tied after the two play-off legs on 6-6 aggregate goals to win the championship. Aarwind Hawks came from behind in the second leg to score 3-1 and tie overall on aggregate.

Winners

• Under 7: Sharks
• Under 9: Sharks
• Under 11: Stallions
• Under 13: Lions 

Edu Garcia move to China League One side on transfer, Rahul Bheke get his contract extended by three years

Bengaluru FC Media

Winger Garcia is all set to be transferred from Bengaluru FC to Zhejiang Lǜchéng and defender Rahul Bheke handed over three-year contract just in a day’s gap. 

Bengaluru FC have reached an agreement with Chinese League One side Zhejiang Lǜchéng for the transfer of Spanish winger Edu Garcia for an undisclosed fee, the club announced on Friday. The deal makes Bengaluru FC the first Indian club to earn a fee from a foreign club for the transfer of a player. 

Garcia was signed on a season-long deal in September and the former Zaragoza man was an instant hit, scoring the Blues’ first ever goal in the Indian Super League in the 2-0 win over Mumbai City FC at the Kanteerava. The second of his two goals for the club came earlier this month against Goa, once again at the Fortress. Always dangerous with his set-piece deliveries, Garcia also racked up five assists for Albert Roca’s side. 

Meanwhile, the club announced on Thursday that Rahul Bheke’s extended contract will continue till May 2021. The 27-year-old has been a vital cog in Bengaluru’s season so far, and the extension reaffirms the club’s commitment towards holding on to its best talent. 

A consistent figure in the Bengaluru back-line, The Mumbai-born defender has played twenty times for the Blues this season, making 19 starts and scoring two goals, both in the AFC Cup. 

At Lǜchéng, Garcia will team up with Spanish coach Sergi Barjuan for the club which plays at the Yellow Dragon Sports Center in Hangzhou. The League One season kicks off on March 10. 

Coach Albert Roca thanked the winger for his efforts that have played its part in Bengaluru’s surge to the semifinal of the ISL. “Edu has been a thorough professional during his time at the club and he was presented an opportunity that seemed right to say yes to. His contribution to our season so far has been very valuable and I wish him the best.”

[BDFA League] BFC Reserves go down 0-1 to Ozone

Bengaluru FC Media 

Ten-man Bengaluru FC ‘B’ suffered their second defeat of the campaign going down 0-1 to Ozone FC in their seventh game of the BDFA Super Division League at the Bangalore Football Stadium, on Thursday.

In the first half that lacked real chances, a freak goal from Anup Theresraj handed Ozone all three points. The attacker chased down a long ball from Anto Xavier on the right flank, and managed to somehow connect with it on the slide just ahead of BFC ‘B’ custodian Shainkhan C. who had rushed out to punch it away. The effort was on target and the ball rolled in into an empty net to put Ozone up 1-0 in the 42nd minute. Meanwhile, the Blues had shout for a penalty turned away early in the half after Leon Augustine was brought down inside the box.

The second half saw Coach Naushad Moosa make a double change brining in Robinson Singh and Bidyananda Singh to add more creativity in attack. While the Blues began pushing up, left-back Parag Shrivas was shown a straight red for a high-foot challenge on an opponent reducing BFC ‘B’ to ten-men in the 57th minute.

The Blues continued to push forward in search of the equalizer, but Ozone capitalized on their one-man advantage to hold on to their narrow lead and seal a win. The result meant that BFC ‘B’ stay second in the standings with 13 points from seven games as Ozone clinched the title with 30 points.

Santosh Trophy finals in Kolkata, Karnataka start their campaign on March 22 against Goa

Defending champions West Bengal will take on Manipur on the opening day as the 72nd edition of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy kicks-off in Kolkata on March 19, 2018. 

Ten teams who qualified from the preliminary stages have been divided into two groups of five teams each with the top two from each group advancing to the semi-finals which are to be played on March 30, 2018. The final is slated for April 1, 2018.


Groupings 

Group A: West Bengal, Chandigarh, Manipur, Kerala, Maharashtra
Group B: Goa, Mizoram, Odisha, Punjab, Karnataka


Fixtures 

GROUP B

• 20/03/2018 – Odisha 1 vs Punjab 2 
• 20/03/2018 – Mizoram 3 vs Goa 1
• 22/03/2018 – Karnataka 4 (Vignesh Gunashekar, Rajesh S, Mathew Gonsalves (own goal), Leon Agustine) vs Goa 1 (Kapil Hoble)
• 22/03/2018 – Odisha 0 vs Mizoram 0
• 24/03/2018 – Punjab 1 vs Mizoram 2 
• 24/03/2018 – Karnataka 2 (Rajesh S, Leon Augustine) vs Odisha 1 
• 26/03/2018 – Goa vs Odisha
• 26/03/2018 – Punjab vs Karnataka
• 28/03/2018 – Mizoram vs Karnataka
• 28/03/2018 – Goa vs Punjab

GROUP A

• 19/03/2018 – Chandigarh 1 vs Kerala 5 
• 19/03/2018 – Manipur 0 vs Bengal 3
• 21/03/2018 – Maharashtra 1 vs Bengal 5
• 21/03/2018 – Chandigarh 1 vs Manipur 1
• 23/03/2018 – Kerala vs Manipur
• 23/03/2018 – Maharashtra vs Chandigarh
• 25/03/2018 – Bengal vs Chandigarh
• 25/03/2018 – Kerala vs Maharashtra
• 27/03/2018 – Manipur vs Maharashtra
• 27/03/2018 – Bengal vs Kerala

SF

• 30/03/2018 – Winner Group A vs Runners-Up Group B
• 30/03/2018 – Winner Group B vs Runners-Up Group A

FINAL 

• 01/04/2018 – Winner Semi-Final 1 vs Winner Semi-Final 2

Ozone placed in Group B in 18-team Second Div I-League

Eighteen teams comprising of seven ISL clubs’ reserve teams (Except ATK, Northeast United FC, Mumbai City FC) who will compete in the preliminary round are divided into three groups. The Preliminary round which will kick-off on March 16, 2018 will continue until May 15, 2018. Teams will play on a home and away basis within the group.

The AIFF League Committee met at the AIFF Football House yesterday and took some vital decisions on the forthcoming Second Division League 2017-18 including the number of teams, the format of the tournament and the schedule. 

The winners of each group plus the best second-placed team would qualify for the final round. However, if reserve teams of ISL clubs finish as winners or runners-up in any group, the position will be passed on to the next non-ISL team. 

Four teams will play at the central venue on a ‘single-leg’ league system which will run from May 21, 2018 to May 27, 2018 at the end which the winners would be promoted to the next tier of Indian Football.

Each club can register maximum 3 foreign players for the 2nd division league out of which one player has to be a national of an AFC Member Association. 

The Groups of the preliminary round are as mentioned below:

• Group A: Real Kashmir, Lonestar Kashmir, Delhi Dynamos FC (reserves), Hindustan FC, Delhi United, FC Pune City (reserves)
• Group B: Madhya Bharat SC, FC Goa (reserves), Kerala Blasters (reserves), Ozone FA, Fateh Hyderabad AFC, FC Kerala
• Group C: TRAU FC, Langsning FC, Mohammedan Sporting, JSW Bengaluru FC (reserves), Jamshedpur FC (reserves), Chennaiyin FC (reserves)  

Bengaluru look to seal AFC Cup berth

Bengaluru FC Media

Armed with the advantage of three away goals, Bengaluru FC will look to seal qualification in the group stages of the AFC Cup when they take on Maldivian side TC Sports Club at the Kanteerava Stadium, in Bengaluru, on Tuesday evening.

A Thongkhosiem Haokip brace and Erik Paartalu’s goal gave Albert Roca a 3-2 win in Male last week after the Spaniard saw his side allow TC to come back from two goals down to level things in what was a strange second half.

The visitors need to win by either a two-goal margin or win scoring more than three goals at the Fortress if they are to edge Bengaluru out and Roca, while sounding confident, warned his side against complacency. “This tie is far from over. Yes, we’ve scored three away goals but we’ve also conceded two and I don’t see why they won’t take the game to us on Tuesday. That said, we are always confident of our abilities and more so at home. We need to focus and get the job done,” said Roca.

Bengaluru seemed to be cruising with two quick second-half goals at the National Stadium when lapses in defence saw the hosts hit back through Anatolii Vlasichev and Ibrahim Mahudhee. But a Haokip screamer in the 78th minute killed the fight from TC in what were difficult conditions. “We had a tough time coping with the weather and pitch conditions in Maldives. Thankfully we have the chance to get the job done at home and we need to make most of the familiar conditions.”

The win came at the cost of an injury to defender Harmanjot Khabra who had to be substituted after he picked up a hit to his chest. The No.10 missed out on the ISL fixture against FC Pune City and won’t be available for selection on Tuesday as he continues to recover.  

Roca chose to rest names like Sunil Chhetri, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Juanan Gonzalez, Dimas Delgado and Lenny Rodrigues and whether the Spaniard hands them a role in the fixture at home, remains to be seen. “I am happy with the way the youngsters on the team have responded to responsibility and they surely need more game time. I will leave the decision late on whether or not I include players who didn’t travel to the Maldives, on the squad for Tuesday,” said Roca.

Group E, as it stands, has three slots filled with Abahani (Bangladesh), Aizawl FC and New Radiant (Maldives) booking their place in the continental competition.

Bengaluru play TC Sports Club for an AFC Cup group stage spot

Bengaluru FC Media

Albert Roca said he expects nothing short of a stern test when Bengaluru FC take on Maldivian side TC Sports Club in the first leg of the AFC Cup Preliminary Stage game to be played at the National Stadium, in Male, on Tuesday.

The Blues arrived in the capital on Sunday after becoming the first side to secure a play-off berth in the Indian Super League but the Spanish manager said it would count for nothing when they attempt to take an important step to make it to the group stages of a competition Bengaluru has enjoyed relative success in. “The game against TC Sports Club is going to be a tougher challenge than the one we faced in Bhutan. They have made it to this stage on the back of two good games against the team from Bangladesh. Their confidence along with being comfortable with the humid weather that we aren’t used to, makes the challenge bigger.”

The side from Maldives rode on an Anatoliy Vlasichev hat-trick at home to get past Bangladeshi side Saif 4-1 on aggregate and book a date with Bengaluru. They will however be without first-choice goalkeeper Dmitry Asnin who, with an injured hand, is expected to be out for long.

Staying consistent with his policy of rotating the squad and handing players rest, Roca has made the trip without names like Sunil Chhetri, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Juanan Gonzalez and Dimas Delgado among others. “It’s something (rotating) we’ve been doing often and it works for us more often than not because we have a hungry squad that is willing to grab the chances it gets. Yes, we have qualified for the play-off stages in the ISL but it’s important to keep our winning momentum going and we play a tough side in FC Pune City on the 16th of this month.” The list of players traveled includes Cletus Paul and Leon Augustine who are part of the Bengaluru FC ‘B’ squad.

The Blues have a 100% win record away and at home against Maldivian clubs, having got the better of Maziya S&RC twice in previous editions of the AFC Cup, but Roca doesn’t make much of the statistic. “It needed a goal in the 90th minute to beat Maziya the last time we played here. Also, things are different this time. TC Sports Club are a new side for us, one with young players and an experienced foreign player who is doing well for them. Tuesday will be a fresh chapter and the squad will treat it exactly like that,” said Roca.

The clash at the National Stadium in Male kicks off at 9.30 pm IST and the reverse leg of the fixture will be played at the Kanteerava Stadium on February 20. 

South United’s Shanthosh diagnosed with Guillain–Barré syndrome

South United’s, Shanthosh Kumar, who was admitted to hospital after suddenly falling sick on January 31 has been diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS). He is still in hospital. 

Doctors have confirmed the condition is not related to sports, however, they are unable to diagnose a specific reason of the illness. The 96-born Shanthosh was diagnosed after multiple tests. 

Sharan Parikh, Director, South United said, "We are all keenly awaiting for Santhosh's recovery. His condition is still critical, but the doctors state that there have been positive signs of recovery, though it is a long road yet."

His condition has showed considerable improvement, though he is still in a critical stage. 

Speaking to the media in a press conference, South United announced that should Shanthosh unable to continue his football career, they will offer him a job in the company.

Meanwhile, South United has taken the responsibility for his medical bills up to the amount of INR 9 Lakhs.

Pranav Trehan, South United CEO is personally paying attention and have been part of the counselling sessions with the doctors in the past 3-4 days. He further added, “He has a certain amount of sensation in his limbs, which is a great sign. He has been on the ventilator intermittently, which is also a positive sign. He is still critical but encouraged by the positive signs and are keenly awaiting for his further recovery." 

Bengaluru go down 2-1 to Students Union

Bengaluru FC Media 

A host of controversial decisions marred Bengaluru FC’s 2-1 loss to Students Union FC in a round four match in the BDFA Super Division League, at the Bengaluru Football Stadium.

After over an hour of football that saw long spells of possession and battles in midfield, a strike from over 25 yards out by BFC skipper Myron Mendes saw stand-in coach Sandesh Boithe’s boys take the lead in the 68th minute.

However, Student’s Union equalized late on in the game through a header from Amoes, though replays showed that the ball had been cleared off the line by defender Prashanth Kalinga.

A defensive lapse late in the game allowed South United score the winner deep into extra time as Amoes latched onto a pass from midfield and placed it past a hapless Shainkhan CP in the BFC goal.

The Blues’ reserve side dropped down to fourth position on the table, as the win took South United to nine points from three games.