Bengaluru FC rout Young Challengers 8-0 in BDFA Super Division league

Bengaluru FC Media 

Bengaluru FC began their BDFA Super Division Campaign with a comfortable 8-0 victory over  FC, at the Bangalore Football Stadium, on Saturday. A hat-trick from Thoi Singh (42’, 45’, 50’, 78’) and goals from Rajanbir Singh (10’), Clarence Fernandes (21’), Sudheer Kotikala (58’) and Monirul Molla (73’) ensured all the points for Jan Van Loon’s side. 

Bengaluru began the game on the front foot and opened the scoring early. Damaiphang Lyngdoh’s low cross into a crowded 18-yard-box found the feet of Rajanbir, who smashed it into the back of the net from close range to give BFC the lead. Twenty minutes into the game, a well-worked corner routine went in favour of the Blue Colts who capitalised and doubled their lead. Amay Morajkar’s cross found Rajanbir, who tapped it into an empty net to make it two. 

The pace of the game slowed down with both teams keeping the ball in the middle of the park, but Bengaluru switched gears and bagged two more goals in the last five minutes of the first half, courtesy of Thoi. 

Into the second half, it took BFC just five minutes to score another goal as Thoi completed his hat-trick. A sublime through ball from Amay Morajkar from the center of the field, found Thoi who kept his composure and slotted it past SK Sadekuddin to make it five. 

Sudheer got in on the action just eight minutes later with a powerful finish from just outside the 18-yard-box to make it six. Substitute Monirul made a huge impact in the game and scored with a sublime volley before setting up BFC’s eighth goal. Molla’s pass found Thoi, who scored his fourth with an easy tap-in. 

The Blue Colts next face Rebels FC on 31st August, at the same venue.

 

Bengaluru FC Colts make semifinal with 1-0 win over Roots FC

A late winner from Lalremtluanga Fanai was enough as Bengaluru FC edged 1-0 past Roots FC in a Zone ‘B’ encounter of the Puttaiah Memorial Cup, at the Bangalore Football Stadium, in Bengaluru, on Saturday. The victory is the Blue Colts’ second on the trot, having beaten Kodagu FC 5-0 in the opener early on in the week.

Earlier, Jan van Loon made one change to his side as Dipesh Chauhan replaced Sharon Padattil in goal. A first half that saw majority of the action in the middle of the park saw both sides struggling to create chances. Thoi Singh came closest to breaking the deadlock when he met a cross from Sudheer Kotikala, but the winger’s shot blazed over the bar. 

Bengaluru had their best chance of the half just moments before the break when Robin Yadav’s shot from distance tested the Roots goalkeeper, but the shot was parried away to safety. Into the second period, Bengaluru came out firing and found the net within five minutes of the restart. 

Akashdeep, found deep by Thoi, sent in a cross for the forward to run onto but the side-footed attempt was off-target. Only moments later, Thoi’s freekick was tipped over the bar. The Blue Colts continued to push forward and saw another big chance go begging when Akashdeep was found unmarked in the 18-yard-box by Felixson Fernandes, with the defender's low cross met with power by the striker, but the effort was off target.

With five minutes left to play in regulation time, substitute Lalpekhlua made an instant impact off the bench, setting up Fanai with a deep cross. The winger, who skipped past his man, sent in an inch-perfect pass for the midfielder, who nodded it beyond the goalkeeper.

The Blue Colts face Kickstart FC next, on 15 August, at the same venue. 

 

Bengaluru Colts begin Puttaiah Cup campaign with 5-0 win

Bengaluru FC Media 

Bengaluru FC begin their Puttaiah Memorial Cup campaign with a 5-0 victory over Kodagu FC, at the Bangalore Football Stadium, on Thursday. Akashdeep Singh (34’, 47’), Thoi Singh (53’), Lalhmingchhuanga (81’) and Edwin Rosario (86’) were on target for the Blue Colts.

It was a cagey first half with both teams struggling to create chances early on, but the Blue Colts broke the deadlock through Akashdeep with ten minutes left to the break. Shighil’s darting run down the wing saw him find empty space to put in a low cross for the forward, who smashed with power beyond the goalkeeper’s reach to make it 1-0.

The chances kept coming from there, but the referee blew the whistle for half-time before Bengaluru could double their lead. Into the second half, the Blue Colts ran riot, scoring from kick-off courtesy of Akashdeep once again. The forward picked up a cross from Thoi and slotted it beyond the ‘keepers reach.

Sudheer Kotikala, who made his debut in Blue set up BFC’s third of the evening. The forwards’ cross found Thoi in space and the winger capitalised with a smart finish from close range. 

Robin Yadav was brought down in the box late into the game and Lalhmingchhuanga stepped up to the occasion and struck it with power into the top left corner to make it four. With four minutes left on the clock, the goalkeeper split the ball and Edwin was there to tap it into an empty net. 

The Blue Colts face Roots FC next, on Saturday, at the same venue. 

 

Bengaluru FC announce squad for Puttaiah Memorial Cup

Bengaluru FC Media 

Newly appointed Blues’ Head of Youth Development Jan van Loon will lead the Bengaluru FC ‘B’ side set to take part in the Puttaiah Memorial Cup, scheduled to take place in two Zones, the club announced on Tuesday. 

Bengaluru FC B will face Kodagu FC in their opening encounter on Thursday, August 11th, with matches scheduled to take place at the Bangalore Football Stadium, in Ashok Nagar.

“The Puttaiah Memorial Cup has always been a special trophy for the club and we look forward to giving our best in order to bring the trophy home. The boys have been training well and I can’t wait to see them showcase what we’ve been working on in the tournament,” said Van Loon, ahead of his side’s opening match.

The squad features new signings Clarence Fernandes, Felixson Fernandes and Ankith P, who also featured in the Premier League NextGen Cup that was held in the UK, late last month. Karnataka’s own Sudheer Kotikala will also feature in Jan van Loon’s side in the Puttaiah Memorial Cup. The Blue Colts’ defender Robin Yadav will captain the Blue Colts for the tournament. 

“We’ve been tracking the progress of the boys in training, and things are looking very positive. They’re working hard as a team and everyone is fighting for a spot in the starting XI. This squad is a mix of young and experienced players, and we’re looking forward to seeing them working together,” said Kaizad Ambapardiwalla, Assistant Coach of Bengaluru FC B.

Following the opener against Kodagu FC, scheduled for 4 pm, the Blue Colts will face Roots FC on August 13th and Kickstart FC on August 15th. 

SQUAD

Goalkeepers: Athul Raj, Dipesh Chauhan, Sharon Padattil

Defenders: Tomthingganba Meitei, Vanlaltleipuia, Oinam Ronex, Ashik Adhikari, Clarence Fernandes, Rajanbir Singh, Felixson Fernandes, Robin Yadav

Midfielders: Bankit Diengdoh, Abu Swalih, F Lalhminngchhuanga, Lalremtluanga Fanai, Bekey Oram, Damaitphang Lyngdoh, Amay Morajkar, Shighil NS, Kamalesh Palanisamy, Edwin Rossario, Ajay Chhetri, Vinith V

Forwards: Ankith Padmanabhan, Lalpekhlua, Basudev CM, Monirul Molla, Akashdeep Singh, Thoi Singh, Sudheer Kotikala

Kerala thrash Karnataka 7-3, enter Santosh Trophy final

AIFF Media 

Super sub Jesin TK scored five as Kerala thrashed Karnataka 7-3 to move a step closer to winning their seventh Hero Santosh Trophy title in the first semi-final at the Manjeri Payyanad Stadium here in Mallapuram on Thursday.

Kerala's game plan was keeping hold of the ball and trying to thread the ball through the Karnataka defence. Skipper Jijo Joseph was the orchestrator in midfield as the hosts tried to go for the kill right from the whistle.  

However, completely against the run of play, Karnataka took the lead. Their game plan was very simple, sit back and defend in numbers and hit the hosts on the counter. And the ploy worked a treat in the 25th minute. Solaimalai N made a fine overlapping run down the left flank and his ball found skipper Sudheer Kotikela lurking at the back post who made no mistake to hand the four-time champions an unlikely lead.

And it could have gotten even better. Biby Thomas' side initiated another counter-attack with Kotikela holding off the defenders and laying off a perfect ball for the onrushing Kamalesh P. With just the goalie to beat, he poked his effort agonisingly wide, much to the dismay of his teammates and his coach.

And that miss broke the back of the Karnataka players and suddenly Kerala roared back into the contest and how! And it all started after the Kerala coach substituted the ineffective Viknesh M for Jesin. And what an impact Jesin had since coming on in the 30th minute.

His first touch was almost a goal after a through ball was latched onto by the substitute but Karnataka keeper Kevin Koshy came off his line to good effect and thwart the striker. But in the 35th minute, Jesin proved too quick for Koshy as this time he beat the advancing keeper and slotted home to equalise as the capacity crowd went wild with ecstasy.

Some very poor defending by the defensive duo of Siju S and M Sunil Kumar meant another presentable opportunity fell to Jesin. And the lanky attacker made no mistake once again, as he toe-poked the ball past a helpless Koshy to hand the seven-time champions a deserved lead.

And it got even better for the substitute as he netted his hat-trick in the 45th minute. A shot from the right by Nijo Gilbert was saved by a diving Koshy but Jesin was once again on hand to divert the ball home. What an inspired piece of substitution it was as the young star netted thrice in the span of only 15 minutes to completely change the complexion of the game.

Kerala was not done yet. Gilbert's cross-cum-shot was saved by Koshy but once again, the rebound fell to a Kerala player. This time around, Shighil was on hand to increase Kerala's lead as they went into the break leading 4-1.

Harsh words must have been spoken by the Karnataka coach as his players started much brighter. Magesh Selva had the chance to reduce the deficit but he just could not sort his feet out as a cross floated in from the right. But Karnataka eventually did pull a goal back in the 54th minute.

An innocuous looping shot from the left flank by Kamalesh was completely misjudged by Kerala goalkeeper Midhun V who tried to tip the ball over the bar. He completely misjudged the flight and the ball nestled in the back of the net. The scoreline read 4-2 in Kerala's favour.

Just as the Karnataka players were sensing the chance to mount a comeback, the super sub struck once again. Within two minutes, Kerala once again led by 3 goals. He nicked the ball off the Karnataka defence, ran from the centre circle and then finished with aplomb with his right foot this time.

Within 5 minutes, the home side extended their lead. Arjun Jayaraj made a fine run down the right flank and his cross took a wicked deflection off of Siju and it completely bamboozled Koshy who had no chance.

Credit to the Karnataka players as they kept pushing and they got their reward in the 72nd minute. A rasping long range drive from Solaimalai went through a crowd of players, beyond the fingertips of a diving Midhun as Karnataka reduced the lead by a goal. But that just sparked Jesin into action once again as he went through on goal to score his fifth of the night and Kerala's seventh.

The match eventually finished 7-3 in favour of the hosts who will be looking to win the competition on home soil and currently look favourites to lift the trophy on Monday. The second semi-final between West Bengal and Manipur is scheduled for Friday (April 29, 2022).

Karnataka thrash Gujarat 4-0 to make it to semis in dramatic style

AIFF Media

Karnataka capped off a dramatic final game in Group B to beat Gujarat 4-0 and qualify for the semi finals of the Hero 75th National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy at the Manjeri Payyanad Football Stadium here on Monday. 

Services' victory over Odisha earlier in the day had upset the comfortable apple cart that was this group. The math, leading into this final group stage game was simple. Karnataka needed to win by a three goal margin to go through. 

For the first half an hour of the game, Gujarat were barely allowed to breathe. In the fourth minute of the game, even as the football hungry crowd was settling into the Manjeri Payyanad, Karnataka had their first crack at the goal, Sudheer Kotikela shooting wide from a tight angle.  

Eight minutes later, they had the lead, Sudheer Kotikela picking up a brilliantly played through ball from midfield, driving into the box from the right, and unleashing a perfect finish into the bottom far corner. His team had the lead, but Kotikela realising the need for more, refused to celebrate, picking the ball up and urging his teammates towards the restart. 

Wave upon wave of Karnataka attacks descended on the Gujarat goal, their defenders sliding, twisting, and heading balls away constantly. n the 19th minute, off a half-cleared corner, Kotikela found himself with the ball at the edge of the box. The forward set himself up, opening his body, looking to curl the ball towards the top right corner. Unfortunately, he blazed high and wide. 

Gujarat offered some attacking vigour of their own, Anirudhsinh Thakor crosing superbly into the Karnataka box in the 23rd minute, the ball curling into a dangerous area yards from goal. If Jay Kanani had been a step faster it would've been the equaliser, but it wasn't to be. Karnataka took it personally and stepped up the ante. 

In the 28th, P Kamalesh, a twinkle toed midfielder with flair unlike any other, collected a square pass from D Arun Kumar at the edge of the Gujarat area, switched feet, cutting past Harshil Parekh and Muhammed Sagar Ali as if they weren't even there, before opening up his body and curling for the right corner of goal. His shot was perfect, and the finish glorious. Karnataka were two to the good. 

Within minutes, they had their crucial third. Prashanth Kalinga ran into space on the right and curled a superb cross into a dangerous area in Karnataka's box. Despite being sandwiched by two defenders, Kotikela, five yards from goal, sent a first time finish into the net. His team were in rapture. And on a rampage. Suddenly, with just half an hour gone, Karnataka were dreaming of the semi-finals. 

They could've confirmed it in the first half itself, Kamalesh's footwork causing the Gujarata defence all kinds of problems in dangerous areas. The teams went into halftime with Karnataka leading by three goals to nothing. 

Gujarat came out for the second half with a little more urgency. Having had no shots on goal in the first half, completely overwhelmed by Karnataka's play, they sought to play themselves into the tie. For the most part they succeeded, their wingers moving much better and producing better balls for Jay Kanani to have a go with. 

In the 52nd the youngster almost pulled one back, played through clean on goal, with only the goalkeeper to beat. A goal then would've turned the tie inside out and the group too. As it was though, S Siju was at hand, the defender putting in a heroic tackle to take the ball off Kanani and save Karnataka the blushes. 

Much like it had in the first half, the half chance spurred Karnataka into action, as they took control of the ball with more ferocity. Right on the hour mark, a cross from D Arun Kumar on the left, dropped the ball perfectly to Magesh Selva in the box. The forward didn't miss, connecting neatly to put Karnataka in dreamland. 

They stayed there for the remaining third of the game, controlling possession brilliantly, creating chances and threatening to score more, all while keeping Gujarat at safe distance. At the referee's final whistle, it was jubilation, in the stands and on the pitch.

Odisha hold Karnataka to a 3-3 draw in Santosh Trophy Group B opener

AIFF Media 

The opening game of Group B in the final round of the 75th Santosh Trophy at the Kottappadi Football Stadium was an exhilarating encounter as Odisha and Karnataka played out a 3-3 draw. Odisha got their noses in front, but Karnataka struck back with three goals, putting themselves 3-1 up in the game. However, it was Odisha who had the last laugh as they levelled the scores.

It was Odisha who started brightly of the two, putting Karnataka on the back foot right from the start. Their high press awarded them the lead in the 15th minute. Chandra Muduli played in a perfect low cross to find Jamir Oram to convert easily. Karnataka stepped up their game after going down and almost found their equaliser when Sudheer Kotikela narrowly put wide a shot/cross from Prashanth. At the half-hour mark though, Karnataka were able to find their equaliser through Sudheer, who made amends for his earlier miss with a simple tap-in from an inch-perfect cross by Prashanth Kalinga. 

Three minutes later, the Southern state turned the game on its head. Bavu Nishad gained possession high up in Odisha's half, unleashing a fierce shot which was deflected into the back of the net. Kamalesh proved to be a menace keeping Odisha's defense busy with his dribbles and crosses. He even stole a ball in the opposition half only to see his shot go wide. Odisha failed to get a grip on the game after their opening goal, losing the ball frequently in midfield. The first half ended with Karnataka in the ascendancy. 

Odisha started the second half in the same fashion as they did the first. A long throw from Abhishek Rawat was flicked on by a blue shirt onto the crossbar. Karnataka's Arun Kumar then drilled a powerful free-kick which skipper Sekhar Behara saved. Odisha got a chance on the other end with Chandra Muduli again making a run but failing to link up with Raisen Tudu in a dangerous position. Just past the hour mark, Karnataka made it 3-1 with Sudheer getting his second after Behara failed to keep his powerful drive away. 

Odisha got back into the game soon after from a mistake in the Karnataka defence. A corner from the right fell kindly to Bikash Kumar Sahoo's head who guided the ball back into the net with the defenders stranded. Karnataka kept attacking though, with Kamalesh hitting the woodwork.

Moments later, Odisha leveled the scores in stunning fashion. Muduli slammed his effort into the top right corner of the net from a counter. Eventually, Karnataka were made to rue the missed chances that felt to them. Odisha keeper Chinmaya Sekhar Bahara pulled out one last save from substitute Ankith's dipping long shot to prevent any more goals on the day. 

Odisha will take on Manipur in their next outing in the 75th Santosh Trophy while Karnataka will hope to do the same against Gujurat, with both games scheduled on Tuesday, 19 April 2022.

Sudheer hat-trick floors Tamil Nadu

Hosts Karnataka stamped their authority by knocking down Tamil Nadu 4-0 in the inaugural game of the Santosh Trophy South Zone qualifiers played at the Bangalore Football Stadium earlier today. 

Karnataka went ahead early in the game, Kamalesh opened the goal account in the 11th minute of the game while Sudheer Kotikela, who has been in prime form for past few seasons in the local BDFA league scored a hattrick. 

Karnataka will take on Andhra Pradesh on Thursday, November 25. The later lost the second game of the day to an identical margin to Telengana. 

Today's Result 

• Karnataka 4 (Kamalesh P-11', Sudheer Kotikela-42', 53', 75') Vs Tamil Nadu 0
• Telangana 4 (Yousuf Ali-16’, Mohammed Imaduddin-71’, 90’+3’, P Joshua-87’) Vs Andhra Pradesh 0 

Next Gameday

• November 25, 11.30 AM: Andhra Pradesh Vs Karnataka 
• November 25, 3.30 PM: TamilNadu Vs Telangana