Tag: Kuwait

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

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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.

Video : Krishna Pandit scores for India U-16 against Kuwait U-16

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Even though India lost the final game against Kuwait 2-1 and failed to qualify, our boys played some scintillating football in the tournament. Krishna Pandit’s sublime goal against Kuwait is a testimony for the talent India has at hand.

Check out Krishna’s goal that was scored in the 64th minute of the match. Also listen to the rapturous cheer from 2000 strong NRIs that came to support the team in the stadium.

 

East Bengal complain to AFC against Kuwait SC

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Kf_east_bengal_logoEast Bengal has registered a formal complaint to AFC against Kuwait SC over the shabby treatment meted out to the Indian team so far.

First there was the visa issue where 3 players and 4 officials did not receive visas on time. This left captain Mehtab Hossain, defender Arnan Mondal and Gurwinder Singh in lurch and they could only travel to Kuwait late last night.

East Bengal is also unhappy about the accommodation as they accused not enough drinking water was available in the players’ rooms. East Bengal secretary Kalyan Majumdar accused that Kuwait SC is playing games to unsettle East Bengal.

Read more : Fuming East Bengal complain to AFC against Kuwait SC

India U-16 maul Bhutan 8-1

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Image Courtesy : AIFF Media

Image Courtesy : AIFF Media

U-16 boys playing the AFC U-16 Championship qualifiers in Kuwait showed their class yet again. They mauled Bhutan 8-1 in their third match of the qualifiers played at the at the Ali Sabah Al-Salem Stadium in Kuwait.

India opened scoring in the 4th minute through Jayananda Singh and did not have to look back from then on except for a blip in the 41st minute when Bhutan through Yoesel Dorji scored their only goal for the day.

U-16 boys played some excellent football, at times totally dominating the Bhutan side. However a bigger score line would have helped our qualification and done justice to the football the boys showcased in the match.

India will take on the hosts Kuwait in their final group stages match on 29-sep, which will now be a crucial tie considering the rules that AFC has set for qualification.

India team :

Dheeraj Singh (Goalkeeper), Amey Ranawade, Jayananda Singh (Kishan Singh – 46th), Amit Tudu, Jerry Lalrinzuala; Kharlukhi (Captain) (Aaron Rodrigues – 79th), Prosenjit Chakraborty, Anirudh Thapa, Nuruddin, Nijwm Muchahary (Edmund Lalrindika – 65th), Bedashwor Singh.

Goal Scorers (India) :

Jayananda Singh – 4th minute

Prosenjit Chakraborty – 13th and 31st minute

Jerry Lalrinzuala – 20th Minute

Bedashwor Singh – 33rd and 47th minute

Edmund Lalrindika – 74th minute

Nuruddin – 75th minute

India U-16 wins 4-1 against Lebanon

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Image Courtesy : AIFF Media

Image Courtesy : AIFF Media

The Indian U-16 team put up a very good show against Lebanon by defeating them 4-1 at the Ali Sabah Al-Salem Stadium in Kuwait.

India went ahead in the 9th minute when Nuruddin fly past 30 yard screamer in to the Lebanon goal. India had to wait till the dying moments of the first half to score again through Jayananda Singh.

In the second half of the match, Lebanon through  Ali Kharoubi made it 2-1. From then on India mounted pressure and scored two goals in succession. Anirudh Thapa in the 61st minute and Bedashwor Singh in the 65th minute making it 4-1 in favor of India.

India went on to play some eye-catching football then on, but failed to increase the score line. This may work against us in terms of qualification. However, India can take heart about the performance and the talented youngsters at our disposal.

Due credits to coach Goutam Ghosh as well, under whom the India U16 team won the SAFF cup earlier this year and is now making good progress.

India will play Bhutan on 27th September.

Goals :  India – Nuruddin – 9′, Jayananda Singh – 43′, Anirudh Thapa – 61′, Bedashwor Singh – 65′

Lebanon :  Ali Kharoubi – 58th

INDIA: Dheeraj Singh (Goalkeeper), Amey Ranawade, Jayananda Singh, Amit Tudu, Jerry Lalrinzuala; Kharlukhi (Deependra Singh Negi – 46th) (Bodo Baoringdao (86th),  Prosenjit Chakraborty, Anirudh Thapa, Nuruddin (Krishna Pandit — 90th), Nijwm Muchahary, Bedashwor Singh (Captain).

Joaquim Abranches to become the only Indian player to have played two AFC Cup Semi finals

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Image Courtesy : http://i-league.org

Image Courtesy : http://i-league.org

Joaquim Abranches will earn the distinction of being the only Indian player to have played two AFC Cup Semi finals,  as East Bengal appears in this year’s AFC Cup semi final.

Abrnaches appeared in the semi final of AFC Cup earlier with Dempo in 2008.

Here is a nice article on how Armando Colaco who discovered Joaquim Abrnaches is excited about his protege : Colaco smiles in Abranches’ moment of glory

India hold Tajikistan to a draw in AFC U-16 qualifiers

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afc_2012_sqIndia held Tajikistan to a draw (1-1) in their first match in AFC U-16 qualifiers at Kuwait. At half time, India were trailing 1-0 with Tajikistans’ Saidov Karomatullo scoring a goal from a corner in the 36th minute of the match.

India managed to equalize when we got a penalty after an Indian player was brought down in the Tajikistan box. Prosenjit Chakraborty managed to convert from the spot making it 1-1.

From what we managed to watch over a jittery stream, Tajikistan did look like a very formidable opposition and Indians did put a good show. While on paper the result looks good, in terms of qualification for the final rounds happening in Thailand next year, this is not a good result. To qualify we have to either win the group or be in the top five runner-up teams from a total of 10 groups in fray. You can check India’s upcoming fixtures and the rules and regulations that guide the qualification here.

Match summary and Stats here : India Vs Tajikistan

Fixtures : India’s matches in AFC U-16 Qualifiers

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afc_2012_sqIndia is in Group A comprising Kuwait, Tajikistan, Lebanon and Bhutan.  India will start of the qualifiers campaign by taking on formidable Tajikistan on 21-sep.  There are a total of ten groups and the winners from all the groups and the best five runners-up will qualify for the finals happening next year in Thailand.

India’s fixtures for the qualifiers are as follows.

21-Sep Tajikistan Vs INDIA 19.20 IST
25-Sep INDIA Vs Lebanon 23.20 IST
27-Sep INDIA Vs Bhutan 23.20 IST
29-Sep Kuwait Vs India 23.20 IST

 

23-member U-16 Squad to leave for Kuwait on Thursday

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Image Courtesy : http://www.the-aiff.com/

Image Courtesy : http://www.the-aiff.com/

The 23-member Indian U-16 National Squad for the AFC U-16 Championship (Qualifiers) to be held in Kuwait from September 21has been announced.

The Squad, who have been crowned SAFF Champions recently, will be leaving for Kuwait City, on Thursday (September 19, 2013).

The Boys will be coached by Goutam Ghosh.

The 23-member Squad is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Anuj Kumar (Uttar Pradesh), Subrata Das (West Bengal), M Dheeraj Singh (Manipur)

Defenders: M Jayananda Singh (Manipur), Jerry Lalrinzuala (Mizoram), T Kishan Singh (Manipur), Prosenjit Chakraborty (West Bengal), Amit Tudu (West Bengal), Amey Ranawade (Maharashtra), Krishanu Santra (West Bengal)

Midfielders: Bugde Vineet Bikas (Goa), Bodo Baoringdao (Assam), Kyntiew Kharlukhi (Meghalaya), Surya Tirkey (Jharkhand), Anirudh Thapa (Uttarakhand), Deependra Singh Negi (Uttarakhand), Aaron Franklin (Goa), Laishram Bedashwor Singh (Manipur), Nuruddin (Uttar Pradesh), Hoble Kapil Satish (Goa)

Forwards: Nijwm Muchahary (Assam) Edmund Lalrindika (Mizoram), Krishna Pandit (Chandigarh).

Head Coach: Goutam Ghosh

Content and picture courtesy:  http://www.the-aiff.com

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