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Mohun Bagan to fight it out in court

November 10, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

Mohun Bagan to file a liquidation suit against United Spirits Limited.

Mohun Bagan A.C. has had a long standing tie-up with UB Group since 1998 as the Sponsor of the Football Team and formed a company in the name of United Mohun Bagan Football Team Pvt. Ltd.

United Mohun Bagan Football Team Pvt. Ltd. had executed a Sponsorship agreement with United Spirits Limited dated 11th June 2013 for 10 years to provide financial assistance of Rs. 8 crore per year and from there on the sponsorship fund was deposited to our account every month, but since November 2014 the fund was unilaterally stopped by USL without any prior intimation.

Upon our inquiry with USL (East Division) and subsequent followup at their Head office, we came to know that Shareholders did not approve the said deal in their EGM dated November 28, 2014. However, in spite of not receiving any payment, Mohun Bagan continued in their commitment to give proper mileage and visibility to the brand “McDowell” as mentioned in the agreement.

On the other hand, Mohun Bagan have constantly tried to resolve the issue on the basis of our cordial relationship with USL but all our effort was unfruitful.

After hearing the current situation the Executive Committee Members of Mohun Bagan A.C. discussed that there is no other option but to file a liquidation suit against USL and thus recommended the Board of Directors of United Mohun Bagan Football Team Pvt. Ltd. to initiate the same as soon as possible to recover outstanding dues and implementation of the contract executed on 11th June 2013.

DSK Shivajians to play in I-league

November 10, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

If reports are anything to go by, AIFF received a boost after Pune based team DSK Shivajians submitted their bid for playing in the top division of India, the I-league. With Bharat FC and Pune FC pulling out of the top flight, it was expected that I-league would be a nine team affair in the upcoming season.

DSK based in Pune, is running an academy in partnership Liverpool is easily expected to clear all the licensing criteria essential for I-league clubs to fulfill.

DSK submits bid, set to become I-League’s 10th club

Kerala FA announce Kerala Super League

November 9, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

Kerala Football Association has announced an ISL styled Kerala Super league that will start in Jan-Feb 2016 time frame in the state. KFA has also signed an 8 year contract with Kolkata based Celebrity Management Group for conducting the league. CMG was involved in the recently concluded Assam Premier League which was a great success.

A minimum of eight or twelve teams will compete in the league on home and away basis. Each teams will have a mandate to play U-23 and U-20 players in the team. There will also be a marquee player in each squad.

Ruud Gullit to be Brand Ambassador

Former Chelsea and AC Milan player have been approached by KFA to be the brand ambassador of the tournament. KFA president was quoted in the New Indian Express saying “Talks are in advanced stage with former AC Milan and Chelsea midfielder Ruud Gullit to be the brand ambassador of KSL”

Corporates to bid for teams

Malayalam media is reporting that corporates who have a turn over of 10 cr per year or 25 crores over the last three years will be eligible for a bid. KFA is looking for teams from Kasaragode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Thrissur, Ernakulam, Kottayam, Idukki and Thiruvananthapuram. KFA will also entertain more than one team from a district. Interested parties can download the bid document from KFA’s website starting from November 16th. A pre bid meeting for interested owners will be held in KFA’s office on November 22nd.

Peter Shilton to announce KSL teams:

United Nations in partnership with KFA is conducting a school football tourney in Kerala. Legendary British Goal Keeper Peter Shilton will be the chief guest for the final match of the UN @70 Trophy to be held in Kozhikode. Peter Shilton will announce the names of the franchises taking part in KSL.

Premier Skills Phase 2 training kicks off in India

November 7, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

The second phase of the hugely successful Premier Skills initiative, run by the Premier League and the British Council will take place from 2 to 7 November 2015 in Thiruvananthapuram, Keralaat Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education (LNCPE).

Premier Skills is a partnership between the Premier League and the British Council. It uses football as a tool to help develop both community coaching and English language skills. The programme trains sports coaches, referees and youth leaders, enhancing their existing football skills, whilst also developing their leadership skills and a greater understanding of the role football can play in tackling other social issues.

In November 2014, for the Phase 1 training, coaches and referees of the Premier Skills Kolkata Goalz programme, belonging to Kerala Football Association, Goa Football Association, Sports Authority of India, and three NGOs, were trained at Sports Authority of India (SAI) and Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education (LNCPE), Kerala. Phase 2 consists of two training programmes: Coach Education (2 – 7 November 2015) and Referee Development (2 – 4 November 2015). The coach education programme will be attended by 36 Indian coaches and 24 Indian referees will participate in the referee programme. These coaches and referees (from Goa and Kerala) have been chosen from the Phase 1 participants.

During the programme, the coaches and referees will receive training from qualified Premier Skills coaches, giving them the skills and support to develop their own community football projects and development as referees and coaches. The coaches’ training programme will be led by experienced Premier Skills Head Coach Jeremy Weeks supported by Robert Perret, Sports Development Manager with Crystal Palace FC Foundation and Cheryl Edwards, Community Coach at Aston Villa Football Club. The referee training programme will be led by Graham Laws, Referee Coach at Professional Game Match Officials Limited supported by Michael Edward Murphy, Assistant Referee Coach.

The training will end with a demonstration of skills that the coaches and referees have learnt over the course of the programme. This will be showcased on Friday 6 November and Sunday 7 November, at SAI, LNCPE, Thiruvananthapuram.

The course in Thiruvananthapuram is being jointly organised by the British Council and Premier League in association with Sports Authority of India (SAI), Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education, All India Football Federation (AIFF), Kerala Football Association (KFA) and Goa Football Association (GFA).

In addition to coaching, a range of free materials, including a dedicated website, has been created under Premier Skills for teachers and learners of English that utilise exciting Premier League content and the British Council’s world-class expertise in English.

Premier League Executive Chairman, Richard Scudamore, said:

“I am thrilled that Premier Skills will return to India this week for Phase 2 of the project. In the UK, Premier League clubs have a long-held commitment to investing in and supporting local community and education programmes and that is now being mirrored internationally, with Premier Skills operating in 25 countries. Given the increasing interest in football in India we are proud to support the country’s growing enthusiasm for the sport by providing more highly trained coaches and referees to pass on their expertise through Premier Skills.”

Mei-kwei Barker, Director, British Council South India said

“We are delighted to present Premier Skills, Phase 2 training programme, our very successful partnership project with the Premier League in South India. It combines English and football, two universal languages and with the support of our local partners in India — Sports Authority of India (SAI), Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education, All India Football Federation (AIFF), Kerala Football Association (KFA) and Goa Football Association (GFA) — we have been able to provide this opportunity. As part of Phase 2 training, the Coach Education and Referee Development programmes will be attended by successful coaches and referees from Phase 1 of the project. We hope the coaches and referees find this training useful and are able to make the most impact in their respective communities”.

The Programme

Coach Education Programme: 2 – 7 November 2015

The Coach Education curriculum aims to develop a group of local master trainers at the end of the programme. It will help to develop community coach skills and knowledge. The training will be in three parts, over 18 – 24 months and involves attendance at and graduation from each part of the training. There will be learning and practical tasks that must be completed between each of the training. Those that are successful will need to demonstrate continued progress throughout the 3 Phases and with the tasks that they will be asked to complete between the training phases. Successful Phase 3 Graduates will become Premier Skills Coach Educators – and they will have an opportunity to train and develop new Premier Skills Community Coaches to support the work of their organisation.

Referee Development programme: 2 – 4 November 2014

The Referee Development programme is a two phase programme which offers participants an introduction to refereeing at grassroots level. Participants include referees that are already working in community football programmes but who have received minimal or no formal training to improve their refereeing skills and knowledge.

For more on Premier Skills visit http://www.britishcouncil.org/society/sport/current-programmes/premier-skills.

Jammu and Kashmir Super Division League 2015 – J&K Bank crowned Champions

November 1, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

J&K Bank crowned Champions, defeated JK Forest 2-0

In the ongoing Jammu and Kashmir Super Division League Football Tournament 2015, J&K Bank defeated JK Forest XI by two goals to nil in the final match and thus crowned as the League Champions for the current playing season. The spectators in thousands witnessed the match here at TRC Synthetic Turf Football Stadium Srinagar.

Right from the whistle go Bank Team started playing their trade strategy of attacking football and got the breakthrough in 19th min by striker Adnan scoring a Superb goal on a through ball by Rizwan. Bank doubled their lead in the second half when Adnan assisted with a fine cross and Zubair netted the ball with a clean header. Rizwan came closer to score at couple of occasions by failed to convert. Forest Team also had some moments to sheer but failed to find the equalisers.

With three straight wins in the super round of top four, J&K Bank emerged as the Winners of the League 2015 securing all 9 points. JK Forest and LoneStar KFC secured 4 points each and CAPD Food Supplies were able to secure 1 point.

During the post match award ceremony Chief Guest on the occasion Hon’ ble Finance Minister Dr Haseeb A Drabu
presided over the function alongwith Guest of Honour Jinab Javaid Ahmad Shah, Secretary J&K SSC. President JKFA Jinab Z.A Thakur among other members of JKFA were also present. Dr. Drabu distributed prizes among Winners & Runners up teams and Officials of the tournament.

The tournament was being organized by J&K Football Association (DFA Srinagar) & Amblin Events. The Event was supported by J&K Bank, Khyber Cements, 92.7Big FM, Aryns Group Of Colleges, LIC of India, HK Cements, CP Advertiser, Posh Enterprises, Share Khan, Green end Corp.

Guwahati FC raring to go in the 2nd Division I-League

October 16, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

Newly formed club appoints Subhash Bhowmick as Technical Director, will face Mohammedan Sporting in the first match

Guwahati, India: Newly formed Guwahati FC is raring to go as they prepare for the 2^nd Division I-League 2015-16. The club is aiming for promotion to the first tier of Indian football and is leaving no stone unturned in its quest. They have appointed legendary former Indian National player and Coach, Subhash Bhowmick as their Technical Director. Mr Bhowmick has previously managed top clubs such as East Bengal, Mohun Bagan, Churchill Brothers, Salgaocar among others. He comes on board as a mentor and guide and the team will benefit greatly from his vast experience.

Guwahati FC has also recently successfully held trials for its first team, with some top talent being recruited from top division clubs in India. They have announced the signing of top Assamese attacker, Durga Boro, who will bring a lot of quality to the first team. They will be announcing many more exciting signings in the days to come.

The club will face Mohammedan Sporting in their first match of the 2^nd Division I-League on 14^th November in Kolkata. The other teams in the Eastern Conference are Neroca FC, Himalayan Gangtok SC and Fateh Hyderabad FC. Three teams will qualify from the Conference for the main Group.

The club has recently tied up with Delhi-based Anglian Management Group (AMG) and Brazil’s Clube Atlético Paranaense (CAP) to set up the first international football Academy in North-East India based out of Guwahati. The Academy plans to train a hundred elite youth footballers from various age groups each of the next three years as well as run numerous programmes throughout the year aimed at attracting many more youth to the sport.To kick off their youth programs, they will be competing in the U-18 and U-15 I-League 2015-16 which will start in November.

Guwahati FC, which was formed at the end of 2014, aims to establish itself by developing local talent in partnership with AMG and CAP. The club intends to leverage AMG’s international connections and experiences managing football clubs in India and in Europe as well as CAP’s globally-renowned youth football programmes.

“We are looking forward to a great campaign in the 2^nd Division I-League and will definitely aim to qualify to the top tier. We will remain passionate and dedicated about the cause of building the sport of football in India from the bottom up, as evidenced by our setting up the Guwahati FC Youth Academy in partnership with Anglian Management Group and Clube Atlético Paranaense.” said Sanjive Narain Co-owner Guwahati FC.

Kerala Blasters – ISL Season II Preview

October 6, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

Kerala Blasters had an amazing first season, they exceeded all expectations by reaching the finals of first season. Blighted with ownership issues KBFC remained low key during the ISL auction but picked up some good players in the player draft. They have roped in an experienced Coach in Peter Taylor who will replace David James who was the marquee player/ manger last season. Trevor Morgan, former East Bengal coach remains as the assistant coach.

Blasters have recruited former Westham Goal Keeper Stephen Bywater, who will replace David James as the foreign keeper this season. Experienced custodian Sandip Nandy and Mohun Bagan goal Keeper Shilton Paul are the other goal keepers in the squad. Bywater will be the first choice keeper, otherwise we will see Sandip Nandy replacing him in the lineup.

Blasters have recruited former New Castle defender Peter Ramage who is expected to play a crucial role this season. Former Spanish International and World Cup winner Carlos Marchena (Marquee Player), Sandesh Jhinghan and Marcus Williams are the other stand out players in defense.

In the middle of the park, Blasters have a variety of options. Portuguese player Joao Coimbra and former Barca trained Josu is expected to start in the middle. CK Vineeth with his blistering pace could earn spot on the left. The other options in midfield are Cavin Lobo, Shankar, Mehtab Hussian Ishfaq Ahmed, Pulga and Peter Carvalho.

The real struggle for Blasters last season was scoring goals. They managed to score only 11 goals last season and out of that 5 were scored by Iain Hume who has then moved on to reigning champions ATK. Management seems to have put in a lot of thought to avoid the goal drought by signing some good talent upfront. The forward line-up of Chris Dagnall, former Arsenal man Sanchez Watt, Antonio German, Mohammed Rafi and Manandeep Singh, is quite a formidable one.

Blasters conceded only 11 goals last season, the lowest among all the teams. They will be looking to improve upon this record this season. With a great home support, Blasters could again be the surprise package of this season.

Indian Super League Season II – Northeast United FC Team Preview

October 6, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

North East United takes on Kerala Blasters in their Indian Super League season II inaugural match. Here is a preview of the team from Aditya Shandilya.

Northeast United FC had a dismal outing in the inaugural season of ISL last year despite starting out well as they finished at the bottom of the table. Though it was hardly a reflection of the talent at their disposal. Their management now had put disappointment behind and rebuild the squad with some good acquisitions. The heart of the highlanders remains the northeastern players as all domestic players are from that region of country.

Starting from the goal post, in Lalthuammawia Ralte of I League runners up Bengaluru FC they notched up a jewel. Ralte appeared in each and every game of BFC this season and managed a lot of clean sheets. Gennaro Bracigliano has been handed a goalkeeping coach cum player role this season. His quality was obvious in ISL 1 with Chennaiyin FC and it provides north eastern club with added options along with their young Kerala born GK T P Rehenesh. They have the advantage of having two good Indian goalkeeper in Ralte and Rehenesh.
In defence they have retained Miguel Garcia and snatched Kerala Blasters FC most reliable defender in ISL 1 Cedric Hengbert. Garcia is the player of the season for Sporting club de Goa this time around and is credible center back. Hengbert and Garcia may come up as a strong defensive wall in, if they click. Along with them will be Aibor Khongjee who was recently is called for national duty against Iran after his stellar show for Shillong Lajong in I-league. If Farias go for four center back then Robin Gurung , Raju Yumnum and Zohmingliana Ralte have to compete for the spot in opening 11. While Ralte is centre back who is good in the air on the other hand Robin and Yumnum are left back with Yumnum played 16 games for Pune FC last season.
In midfield they have their marquee signing Simao Sabrosa to rely upon and if he still match fit then he can team up with Bruno Arias who switched from Delhi Dynamos. But the pick of the auction for highlanders, Seityasen Singh will be the key man in midfield if the team have to succeed. His performance in I league for Royal Wahingdoh make him the second best midfielder after Eugeneson Lyngdoh and team’s assistant manager Santosh kashyap will know what Seityasen exactly brings to the team. Sanju Pradhan, Boithang Haokip and Marlingki Suting provide options in the flank alongside Bengaluru FC’s Siam Hangal and Alen Deory. Midfield looks very versatile and experienced as well.
Coming to the forward line, the surprise grab by Northeast United is Nicolas Velez. The Argentine is in tremendous form for Warrior FC of S league by netting 21 goals in 26 appearances. If he can replicate the same showing in ISL then he will turn out to be the buy of the season. In Holicharan Narzary we have a very talented partner who is now pretty successful in the national scene as well. Boubacar Sanogo, their latest signing is also a goal machine, he may not be at his best but provides much needed experience in forward line while Ghana’s Francis Dadzie is also a young prolific striker in good form. This makes North East’s forward line a formidable one.
So now it is up to NEUFC to come out all guns blazing in Indian Super League.

Ratings :

Goalkeeper :

8

They have picked good foreign and a best Indian goalkeeper and so there is less to worry on this front.

Defence : 6

They are short on options as far as foreign players are concerned. Injury to any of them will be a huge concern.

Midfield : 7

They will rely lot on their marquee player Simao Sabrosa and Seityasen Singh. These players have to perform for highlanders to succeed. Seityasen is key between their transition between defense and attack and as he has been in good form recently.

Forward : 7

They have the players who can score goals but lack of Indian players up front may cause problem in cramped tournament like this. Injury to Holicharan Narzary is injured and this could disrupt their plans. His timely recovery is important for Cesar Farias’s team.

Coach:
As far as Cesar Farias is concerned, the ex Venezuela coach have a reputation of bringing less fancied squad to the top as coach of Venezuela junior and senior teams. His assistant Santosh Kashyap also made his name during his stint at Royal Wahingdoh during last I league season. Both

believes in strong midfield so they may go for 4-4-2 or 3-4-3 formation.

Formation & starting line-up : 4-4-2 or 3-4-3

Ralte, Garcia, Aibor, Raju, Hengbert, Simao, Bruno, Seityasen, Sanju Pradhan, Holicharan, Nicolas

Player to watch:

Nicolas velez. He is well acclaimed striker as of now and many Asian clubs will be keeping a keen eye on him. Easily makes him the most important player for Northeast United. Last time around highlanders struggled due to their lack of goals, mainly due to the failure of James Keene and Durga Boro. Hopefully Velez will step-up and make up for the paucity of goals for North East United.

Tactial Preview of Mumbai City FC – ISL Season II

September 30, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

Anelka’s inexperience as a manager would be Mumbai City FC’s biggest weakness this season says Maulik Mehta. Here is an excellent tactical preview of Mumbai City FC from him. Read on.

Mumbai City Football Club the team with a lot to prove this season!! Restricted by injuries to key players in the inaugural season their campaign didn’t had a happy ending.The club’s hopes were dashed last season as they finished second from the bottom of the table in the eight-team competition. However, having assembled a squad of powerful, attacking players for the second season, the club looks a rejuvenated side aiming to finish their unfinished business.

Personally with the embarrassment of riches MCFC possess in attack they should employ a 4-1-3-2 formation or a 4-4-2 diamond primarily at home or against goal shy teams who come to sit back and defend. Norde & Moritz should cut inside allowing the fullbacks to net in crosses from wide and form a potent attacking threat. However, the presence of only one defensive midfielder in the form of Juan Aguilera will make them susceptible on the break. Also, non-tracking back by wingers could be an issue that could be looked upon by the opponents. Any alterations could include the involvement of L.Ralte on the wings or as an attacking midfielder that could allow Sunil Chhetri to form a terrifying partnership with the French superstar. Ashutosh Mehta & L.Mawia could be used in the right and left full back spots especially when the games come thick & fast. However any injury to Subrata Paul would disrupt their whole campaign since their backups Albino & Debjith are young & lack big match experience. It would be fascinating & interesting to see who replaces and how they cope when Subrata Paul isn’t around.

A more holistic approach could be used during away matches where you need to make sure you don’t concede early and keep the match tight and counter attack the rivals. They can use a 4-4-1-1 formation without the ball and a 4-2-3-1 formation during ball possession which could keep them compact as well as maintain stability during attack as well as in defense. They could use piqiounne & subhash singh mainly in the second half to hold the ball up and run at the defenses which could eventually lead them to a goal or two.Also Gabriel Fernandes mainly a right wing player known for its attacking prowess as well as tracking back could come on to preserve the goal lead.

Personally speaking I can’t see Mumbai city employing a back 3 with the lack of wing backs slots. The Indian pair of Gabriel & Rowilson along with much talented Brandon Fernandes could be used predominantly from the bench.

Anelka and Piqiounne could be used in alternate matches however I don’t see both of them starting in a single match. Also, Subhash Singh with the wealth of stamina and pace could be used from the start, however I do question his ball holding skills. Honestly Subhash Singh could be destructive on the right flank or as a 2^nd striker. The likes of Mortiz, Norde, Chettri & Cmovs would remain the players to watch out for MCFC this season.

This season MCFC may not be the favorites but they do have a great team lined up. However it remains to be seen how Nicolas Anelka manages and sets his team up. Most ISL Teams have Managers with wealth of experience & it remains to be seen how Anelka copes with the demanding nature of the league. This could turn out to be their biggest weaknesses. Also, they do have a tendency to concede 3goals though their requisite power packed midfield has the capability to score 4 and win it for the team.

Personally, I do think they will finish just outside the top 4 not because they don’t have a great side mainly because other sides are much stronger than MCFC.

Follow the author of this preview – Maulik Mehta on twitter here.

Want to feature your write-up on FNI? Write a preview for Indian Super league!

September 24, 2015 footballnewsindia Leave a comment

The second season of Indian Super League is almost here. Here is a chance to show off your writing skills. Write a preview for the second season and send it to us. The best entry will be published on footballnewsindia.in

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The shorter and powerful the preview, the better!
Content should be original and should not be copied from else where. No plagiarism please.
The discretion of selecting the best entry solely lies with the editor of FNI.

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