AFC Annual Awards 2015 Nominees

AFC, Asia, Football, Awards, Soccer, India, New Delhi

 

Here is the list of all nominees for the AFC Annual Awards 2015 that is taking place in New Delhi, India.

AFC Member Association of the Year

Inspiring
Football Federation Australia
IR Iran Football Federation
Japan Football Association

Developing
Hong Kong Football Association
Tajikistan Football Federation
Vietnam Football Federation

Aspiring
Bangladesh Football Federation
Bhutan Football Federation
National Football Association of Brunei Darussalam

AFC Dream Asia Award

Chinese Football Association
Japan Football Association
Vietnam Football Federation

AFC National Team of the Year

Men
Australia National Team
Korea Republic National Team
Uzbekistan U-20 National Team

Women
Japan Women’s National Team
Japan U-19 Women’s National Team
DPR Korea U-16 Women’s National Team

AFC Coach of the Year

Men
Ange Postecoglou (AUS)
Norio Sasaki (JPN)
Mahdi Ali Hassan (UAE)

Women
Gao Hong (CHN)
Asako Takakura (JPN)
Nuengrutai Srathongvian (THA)

AFC Player of the Year

Men
Zheng Zhi (CHN)
Ahmed Khalil (UAE)
Omar Abdulrahman (UAE)

Women
Elise Kellond-Knight (AUS)
Aya Miyama (JPN)
Rumi Utsugi (JPN)

AFC President Recognition Awards for Grassroots Football

Inspiring
IR Iran
Japan
Uzbekistan

Developing
Jordan
Palestine
Vietnam

Aspiring
Brunei Darussalam
Kyrgyz Republic
Sri Lanka

AFC Fair Play Association of the Year

Chinese Football Association
Japan Football Association
Korea Football Association

AFC Club of the Year

Guangzhou Evergrande (CHN)
Johor Darul Ta’zim (MAS)
Al Ahli (UAE)

AFC Futsal Player of the Year

Hasan Zadeh Navlighe Ali Asghar (IRN)
Vahid Shamsaee (IRN)
Mohammad Naser Safari (IRN)

AFC Futsal Team of the Year

Tasisat Daryaei (IRN)
Qadsia (KUW)
Thai Son Nam FC (VIE)

AFC Youth Player of the Year

Men
Dostonbek Khamdamov (UZB)
Eldor Shomurodov (UZB)
Zabikhillo Urinboev (UZB)

Women
Rikako Kobayashi (JPN)
Ri Hae Yon (PRK)
Ri Hyang Sim (PRK)

AFC Foreign Player of the Year

Everton Augusto De Barros Ribeiro (BRA)
Ricardo Goulart Pereira (BRA)
Juan Carlos Rodriguez Belencoso (ESP)

AFC Asian International Player of the Year

Massimo Luongo (AUS)
Ki Sung Yueng (KOR)
Son Heung Min (KOR)

WC Qualifiers 2018- India Vs Oman: Why the tie promises to be a humdinger!

India, Oman, World Cup, Qualifier, 2018, Russia, Football, Soccer, Asia, AFC, bangalore, Kyazzonga, Sunil Chhetri, Subrata Pal, Al HabsiHere is a preview by Sumit Bhattacharya

The countdown has begun.

11th of June 2015. 19:00Hrs.Bengaluru.India Vs Oman. First match in the second round of WC 2018 Qualifiers for India. It is going to be a crunch tie for India from many angles. The big question is, can India defeat Oman or at least snatch a point?!Let us examine.

 

History:

 

From a nondescript history, Oman rocket-blasted into the Asian football horizon only in the 1990s. Indian football on the other hand plummeted into the bottom of its history roughly during the same period.

The current FIFA ranking of Oman and India are 101 and 141 respectively. India faced the Red warriors twice in WC qualifiers in 2004.Oman won the away match 5-1 but India managed to pull off a draw in the away match 0-0.The most recent encounter was in 2012 when India was again thrashed 5-1.

However for the past few months, Oman is not in its best of forms. It was battered in the Asian cup 2015 in January by Asian power houses. In preparatory friendlies, Oman was held to a goalless draw by a lower ranked Bahrain on 3th May  and on 5th June, another lower ranked Syria beat Oman 2-1. What it signifies that Oman has still some distance to go to be the best even in Asia. A glance at the social networking sites of Omani football will reveal widespread resentment against the French coach. Some fans even predicted a win for India. (https://www.facebook.com/OmanNationalFootballTeam/timeline)

Meanwhile team India is on an upswing and has improved a lot since they last played Oman. Most of the sloths and technically amateurish players, blessed by the previous coach have been replaced by a far fitter and faster lot of hungry youngsters who are hardly afraid of anyone on ground.

So the match is likely to be played without the baggage of history  and would definitely be a test of character for the boys in Blue.

 

Indian football reloaded:

 

Till date, National team fixtures normally meant no live telecast, sparse crowd consisting mostly of media and security personnel with a few hundred diehard fans. However this time it is a different story altogether. The amount of excitement and enthusiasm that is being witnessed about this match at Bengaluru is unprecedented. The minuscule number of fans who believed that India could make it big in football is growing exponentially each passing day. After the glitzy inaugural edition of the hugely popular Indian Super League and a far improved I-league 2015, expectation is running high. Thousands of guys are hoping against hope for a miracle win by the blue tigers. Sony Six has started airing promos for the match. Various online forums are abuzz with the selection of team and team composition Tickets sales have started online and one is expected to have a full house at Sree Kanteerava stadium. If so, then it will indicate how popular the game of football has really become in cricket crazy India.

 

Home advantage:

 

Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Oman has a capacity of around 34k.All the other stadiums have capacities of less than 15k to below 10k.So it is pretty safe to assume that most of Oman’s players are not used to playing in front of huge crowds. Thus a vociferous, hostile crowd of over 20 thousand might prove to be a factor in a crunch game like this. High humidity of Bengaluru is also going to be a crucial factor. Playing surface of Sree Kateerava is an area of concern for Oman too. Team manager Mohammed Al Alawi had visited the Stadium recently and found the surface “uneven and bumpy”. However all the Indian players are well versed with pitch which will be an added advantage for India.

So it remains to be seen how far India can exploit the home conditions.

Team Oman vis-à-vis team India:

Physicality:

Traditionally West Asian teams are physically stronger than their Indian counter parts. However Oman is an exception. A closer look will reveal that this Indian team has players equally well built if not stronger.

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu -1.97 m, Arnab Mandal- 1.79m,  Sandesh Jhingan  1.88m, Dhanachandra Singh- 1.80m, Rino Anto- 1.74m, Dhanpal Ganesh- 1.85m,Robin Singh-1.85m, Lalchhuan Mawia- 1.82, Gurwinder Singh-1.83m , Saityasen Singh -1.78m,Augustin Fernandes- 1.79m,Holicharan Narzary -1.79m are all tall enough to match most of their opponents. Here is a view of Oman player’s heights:

GK-Ali Al Habsi(1.84m),Al Busaidi(1.73m) – Al Musalami (1.75m)–Sallam Amur – Ali Salim(1.65m), Eid Mohammed(1.83m) – Ahmed Kano(1.79m), Raed Ibrahim(1.78m) – Al Hosni(1.81m) – Qasim Said(1.78m), Al Muqbali(1.81m)

 

Department of Fitness:

Fitness of Indian players has always been an area of concern. However with the improvement of training facilities and introduction of professional trainers, team India has made remarkable progress. As evident from the matches against Nepal or the recently held AFC cup matches. Indian players appeared far fitter than their predecessors. They ran full throttle till the very end. Jackichand Singh, Saityasen Singh, Eugensen Lyngdoh,Sandesh Jhingan or Sehnaj Singh can be as fast as anybody. So this time Oman just might find it tough to run past the Indians unlike previous matches.

Game plan:

Anyone watching I-league 2015 or The ISL season#1 will vouch for the improvements of Indian players as far as the passing or ball possession is concerned. The Omanis are known to play short passes too. It will be really interesting to see how the battle of midfield goes. Expect an all out battle as India is expected to go for pressing football to break up the rhythm of Omanis. Oman, if put under pressure is prone to leaving a lot of open spaces for the opponents. It remains to be seen how Mr. Constantine and his boys take advantage of these loopholes.

Former France international Paul Le Guen, in charge of team Oman, has come under fierce criticism off late for Oman’s recent performances. He has made quite a few changes from the squad which took part in Asian Cup in Januray 2015. Regulars like Jaber Al Owaisi(DF), Al Shatri(DMF),Hassan Mudhafar(LB), Yaqoob Abdul Karim(FW) and Said Al Ruzaiqi(FW) have been axed.

Anyway India needs to watch out for the striker Abdul Aziz Al Muqbali, the set piece master Ahmed ‘Kano’ Mubarak, nippy young wingers, Raed Ibrahim and Qasim Said. Experienced customer  Ahmed ‘Kano’ Mubarak is another threat who gets dangerous during his attacking forays.

Meanwhile India would be relying on Mr. Ever Dependable Sunil Chhetri and the brute strength of the mercurial Robin Singh with Saityasen and Jackichand Singh providing ample support. Defence looks solid but availability of the emerging star Sandesh Jhingan might be a dampener as he is carrying a shoulder injury. However the sturdy Dhanachandra Singh’s role will be most crucial along with that of the big kid, Dhanpal Ganesh for quick overlaps and breaking of Oman’s flow. The extremely talented Eugeneson Lyngdoh will have to carry the mantel of midfield.

 

Parting notes:

Oman is obviously the favorite to win the tie. However rest assured that India will come hard at them. It is   going to be a test for Mr. Constantine’s acumen as his team selection, leaving out Romeo or Brandon Fernandes and benching Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, has come under a lot of criticism from the fans. If Oman fumbles a bit and India puts up an above par show then an upset win is not all that impossible for India though even a draw is being considered by many to be a respectable result. If so then this surely will be a watershed moment for Indian football.

Italian Giants Inter Milan to Conduct Coaching Camp in Chennai

Inter Milan, Tamil Nadu, Chennai, Football, Soccer, Indianfootball, Coaching Camp, Talent Hunt, India, AsiaMedia reports suggest that Inter Milan, the Italian club is to conduct a two day coaching camp in Chennai. The event slated to be on March 19th and 20th will have theory and practical classes.

This would be a joint effort of Tamil Nadu Football Association, Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu and Inter Milan. The Inter Milan contingent will consist of technical director Marco Monti, fitness coach Stefano Rapetti and youth coach Andrea Ratti.

Read More : Inter Milan team coming to Chennai in search of talent – TOI

 

Australian Coaches to Train Manipur Boys

Manipur, football, Indianfootball, North EastImphal, January 12 2014 : All Manipur Grassroots Football Parents’ Association would organize a football coaching programme starting from January 14 at 6 am everyday.

The coaching would be conducted and guided by popular Australian coaches.

The association has notified to all the parents of those boys who took part in the recently concluded grassroots football coaching camp held between July and September to take part in the said programme as well.

The boys should report with playing kits along with their parents.

Source: Hueiyen News Service

AFC Medical Conference to be held in India in 2015

AFCIndia will be hosting the 5th AFC Medical Conference in April 2015, the organisers announced on Tuesday, giving an opportunity to the people in the country to understand more about the medical science behind the game of football.

“After Malaysia, Japan and Oman it is now India which has been given the privilege and honour to host the biggest sports medicine conference of Asia,” Organising Secretary, AFC Medical Conference-2015, PSM Chandran said in a release.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) with the patronage of the International Football Federation ( FIFA) will conduct the event from April 2-4, 2015.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) with the patronage of the International Football Federation ( FIFA) will conduct the event from April 2-4, 2015.

All India Football Federation (AIFF) will host the conference which will see renowned expert scientists covering evidence based information on sports science and medicine.

In addition, participants will have exposure to latest medical equipment and technologies, pharmaceuticals, physiotherapy and rehabilitation, fitness equipment as well as health products during the three day programme.

Source : Press Trust of India

Manchester United Trophy will Tour India in January 2014

manchester United, Trophy Tour, India, DHL

Image Courtesy : manutd.com

Celebrating their 20th league title Manchester United along with their sponsors DHL is planning to tour their Premier league trophy to various locations in the world.

After a send off in Manchester later this month, the trophy will tour will kick-off in Rio De Janeiro on 30 October. In November the trophy will tour various locations in Latin America. In December trophy will be taken to various locations in Asia.

In the month of January Manchester United Trophy will tour India. The trophy tour locations in India are Delhi and Bombay. Exact Dates for the tour is yet to be announced.

Check out the Destination of the trophy tour here

AFC A License Course to be held in Kerala

AFCAFC A License Course course will be held in Thiruvanthapuram, Kerala. The course will start on October 18th and will go on till November 16th.

Team India technical director Rob Baan and Mr. Vincent Subramanium from Asian Football Confederation (AFC) will be conducting the course. Coaches from all over India is expected to take part in the course.

The candidates selected for the same are as follows:

Luis Mario Aguiar, Levino Pereira and Lino Pereira (Goa); Narayana Menon, Xavier Pious, P.K. Rajeev, V.P. Shaji, Bino George, Jo Paul Ancheri (Kerala); Gautam Ghosh, Satyabrata Bhowmick, Bastab Roy; Achinta Kumar Belel and Anita Sarkar (West Bengal); Kamalkanta Singh (Assam); John Kenneth Raj and C. Ravi Kumar (Karnataka); Arindam Biswas (Pondicherry); N. William Koso and Roko Angami (Nagaland); Bitan Singh and Surmala Chanu (Manipur); Bobby Nongbet (Meghalaya); Mita Michiteru (Japan).

With inputs from AIFF Media article from : http://www.the-aiff.com

India finish 3rd in the Group A of AFC U-19 Qualifiers

India, AFC U-19 Qualifiers, football, Qatar, Turkmensitan

Image Courtesy : AIFF

After completing four of their matches in group A in the AFC U-19 qualifiers held in Qatar, India managed only a solitary win against Nepal (1-0), tied the match against Turkmenistan (2-2) and conceded defeats against Uzbekistan (3-0) and Qatar (2-0).

Although tied on points with Turkmenistan, with a superior goal difference, India finished 3rd in their group.

India’ matches in AFC U-19 Qualifiers

[matches league_id=3 team=19]

Group A Table:

[standings league_id=3]

Videos :

India 1 – 0 Nepal. Due credits to the the folks at Indian Football Home

AFC Cup : Kuwait SC defeats East Bengal 4-2 – Away goals provide a glimmer of hope

Kf_east_bengal_logoKuwait SC defeated East Bengal 4-2 in the first leg of AFC Cup semfinal that took place in Kuwait.

The match started off slowly and East Bengal had the first shot on goal when Chidi’s tame shot was stopped by the Kuwait SC goal keeper. Then on Kuwait SC dominated the proceedings all through the 1st half of the match. They opened scoring in the 17th minute through Issam Jemaa, he went to add another one in the 33rd minute and Waleed Ali made it 3-0 before the half-time whistle.

When play resumed after the break, thanks to East Bengal custodian Gurpreet’s silly mistake Kuwait SC increased their tally to four through Chadi Hammami’s simple tap in.  At that stage it looked like Kuwait SC is heading to a massive victory.

However East Bengal managed to turn around the match partially by scoring two crucial away goals after their Brazilian coach Marcos Falopa brought in two substitutions.  One among the substitutes Lalrindika Ralte swung in a very good corner kick which was headed in by Uga Okpara in the 66th minute. In the 87th minute Lalrindika Ralte himself got on the score sheet with a superbly taken goal.

While Kuwait SC home stadium was almost barren with only a handful of supporter cheering them, they will come across a different proposition when they visit Kolkota in the second leg of the semi-final on October 22nd. With good home support and if East Bengal can replicate their second half performance in Kuwait they stand a slender chance to overturn this tie.

Team line-up and stats here.

Watch all the goals from the match here. Due credits to the folks at Indian Football home.

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