India beat Syria to lift Nehru Cup

NEW DELHI: Defending champions India beat Syria 5-4 in the penalty shootouts to lift their second successive Nehru Cup title at the Ambedkar Stadium on Monday.

Goal-keeper Subroto Paul, who saved three penalties to become India’s saviour, was awarded the man of the match.

Climax scored the first goal for India in the penalty shootouts. Renedy took the second penalty and missed as he hit the pole. India goal-keeper paul revived the home team's hopes as he stopped the second penalty diving to his left. Sunil Chhetri again gave India the lead by scoring in the third penalty. Again Indian goal-keeper stopped the Syrian penalty to retain the lead. Mehraj missed the penalty would have given India the title. Syria again levelled again by scoring in the fourth penalty. Sukumar Singh again scored to give India the lead.

Before the penalty shootouts, India were granted a free kick because of a foul committed on Indian captain Bhaichung Bhutia in the 114th minute in the extra-time and Renedy didn't let the opportunity go waste as his kick swung from right to left to beat the Syrian captain and goalkeeper.

But Syria scored the equaliser in the dying minutes to dash India's hopes and the final went into penalty shootouts.

Coach Bob Houghton's decision to rest key players in the last inconsequential league match against the same opponents paid dividends as the senior players came afresh for the final encounter of the five-nation football tournament.

It was a heated, tensed and keenly contested encounter in which the referee had to intervene many times to calm down the players. Indian captain Bhaichung Bhutia was handed yellow card in the first half of the game. However, the first half ended without a goal.

India were awarded a free kick soon after the commencement of the second half when skipper Bhutia was fouled. But the free kick taken by Steven Dias was stopped by the Syrian goal-keeper.

The heat was not limited to just the players. The Syrian coach Fajer Ebrahim lost his cool in the 60th minute when two off-sides were given against his team in quick succession. He got into an argument with the linesman and that led to India coach Bob Houghton gesturing towards the Syrian camp while pointing his fingers and saying something.

In 89th minute when an off-side was again given against Syria, a frustrated Ebrahim argued with the linesman again. This time Haughton was only staring at him without saying anything.

In the extra time, a support staff of Syria was sent off for arguing with the linesman following an ugly incident in which Bhutia was tackled from behind by a Syrian player which led to some pushing and shoving.

The highly contested match was watched by Bollywood star Salman Khan and AIFF acting president and Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel and Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports M S Gill.

Two years ago at the Ambedkar Stadium, the home team had beaten the Syrians in front of a 20,000-strong crowd to win their maiden Nehru Cup title.

Bhutia raring to go in I-League

Fit-again Bhutia raring to go in I-League
Tapan Mohanta
With the nagging hamstring injury sustained in the AFC Challenge Cup healed, a fit-again Baichung Bhuita is raring to go full throttle when his team, Mohun Bagan, opens its I-League campaign against minnows Mumbai FC on Saturday.
The triumph in the Kolkata Football League -- under new coach Karim Bencherifa -- is a step in the right direction and the Indian football captain, who will take charge of the green-and-maroon brigade in the I-League, says his side has a good chance to finish winners this time.
"I hope to start in our first match. I've recovered about 90 per cent... I seem to be in an okay condition and I believe the few days left will make me fully fit for our first encounter.
"A good start is very crucial. We are hoping for a good start so that it helps us carry the momentum into the meet. We have a very good blend of experienced and youngsters and with (Jose Ramirez) Barreto in fine form, we look for the best. We have a definite chance of winning the title," Bhutia said on Wednesday.
Mohun Bagan's five-day residential camp concluded in Kolkata on Tuesday after the 38-member star studded line-up pulled out from their earlier-planned six days' itinerary in the Steel City of Jamshedpur.
Lashing out at the organisers for having arranged poor practice facilities in Jamshedpur, the ace Indian striker said, "It was a complete waste of time. It hampered our preparation. We lost two precious days. It was a bad start to our preparatory camp and affected the boys' mindset also. The organisers were responsible for all this; they should have checked before calling us."
It may be recalled that Mohun Bagan left for Jamshedpur on September 16 but after complaining of poor accommodation and food facilities, they aborted their sojourn in a huff and returned the same evening.
The club then organised a camp at a city hotel from October 19.
Nevertheless, all this did not rob them of any match practice, added Bhutia.
"We may have lost a couple of days, but still we could manage four-five days of training and we are in a fine shape. Now, I'm looking forward to a couple of days of rest before we start our campaign."
The 31-year-old feels the team is getting better under Moroccan coach Bencherifa, who was with Churchill Brothers earlier.
"He is really doing well. Having spent quite a lot of time -- through the Kolkata League -- he has mixed with us very well. We all have a good understanding, very important to play as a team. It's about believing in each other so as to produce a result," said the AFC Challenge Cup winning captain.
With I-League now comprising 12 teams, and hence more matches, Bhutia feels they have to space themselves out carefully to avoid injury breakdowns.
"More teams means more matches and a longer duration. Not only me, every player has to guard against injury and play in the right spirit."
Bhutia had a word of praise for arch-rivals East Bengal as well.
"East Bengal are a good team and with the new coach (Stanley Rozario) they can get better and better. I am sure with time, they will play better," he said.
He, however, refused to be dragged into the recent controversy surrounding Mohun Bagan secretary Anjan Mitra's remarks that East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting have "communal names", something that can incite violence on the field.
"I have no comments on that. About violence during an EB-Mohun Bagan match, we players have nothing to do in it," Bhutia said.
Mohun Bagan finished fourth in the last season's I-League, while arch-rivals East Bengal were sixth in the final standings. source: http://www.rediff.com/sports/2008/sep/24bhutia.htm

Baichung to play with Ballack

NEW DELHI, July 12 : Indian football icon Baichung Bhutia is all set for a memorable experience of playing under the captaincy of either Michael Ballack or Clearance Seedorf in the ‘Goal 4 Africa’ charity match in Munich. Baichung will rub shoulders with a host of international stars at the Allianz Arena, the Bayern Munich ground, in the unique event aimed at raising 90 million Euros for the African children. “Ballack and Seedorf (Goal 4 Africa ambassador) will be the two captains, but I won’t be able to tell Baichung will play under whom,” Marion Beishuizen, a top official of the event organisers, told PTI from Munich. Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, Liverpool’s England midfielder Steven Gerrard, Barcelona’s Samuel Eto’o and Italian World Cup winner Gennaro Gattuso are set to play in the match inspired by Nobel laureate Nelson Mandela’s dream of “Education for all — all for education”. ‘Goal 4 Africa Foundation’ had also listed Kaka, Ronaldo, Gianluigi Buffon, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Emanuel Adebayor, Robin van Persie, Paolo Maldini, Andrea Shevchenko and Michael Essien among the international stars to play the match, but Marion said the final line-up will be known in the hour before the match, which starts 8 pm local time. “The confirmation of who would play or who would not will be known one hour before the match because most of the players are now flying in to Munich. But Kaka has withdrawn from the match due to personal reasons,” Marion said.